Oracle VM VirtualBox Vulnerability Could Lead to Hang or Crash, Data Tampering

CVE-2023-22098

What is CVE-2023-22098?

CVE-2023-22098 is a vulnerability identified within Oracle VM VirtualBox, a virtualization product developed by Oracle that enables users to run multiple operating systems on a single physical machine. This flaw poses a severe risk as it allows authenticated attackers with privileged access to disrupt the normal operation of VirtualBox, which can result in service hangs or crashes. The vulnerability enables unauthorized modifications to the data managed by VirtualBox, thereby compromising the integrity and availability of virtualized services critical to organizations.

Technical Details

The vulnerability affects versions of Oracle VM VirtualBox prior to 7.0.12. It is characterized as easily exploitable, necessitating only that an attacker has high-level credentials within the environment where VirtualBox operates. The flaw resides in the Core component of the virtualization software, permitting potential attackers to manipulate the application, leading to significant operational difficulties. The CVSS base score for this vulnerability is 7.3, indicating that it has notable impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Potential Impact of CVE-2023-22098

1. Denial of Service (DoS): Exploitation of this vulnerability can cause frequent and severe crashes of Oracle VM VirtualBox, leading to downtime and interruption of essential services that rely on this virtualization platform.

2. Data Tampering: Attackers could gain unauthorized access to modify, insert, or delete data within VirtualBox, endangering the integrity of critical information and potentially affecting various dependent systems.

3. Unauthorized Data Access: Exploiters may also gain unauthorized read access to sensitive data stored within the VirtualBox environment, increasing the risk of data breaches and unauthorized information disclosures.

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