How to remediate – WebTitan Web Interface Default Credentials

1. Introduction

The WebTitan Web Interface Default Credentials vulnerability affects web applications protected by WebTitan where default administrative login details are still in use. This poses a high risk as an unauthenticated attacker can gain full control of the application’s management interface. Systems running the WebTitan web application with factory settings are usually affected, potentially impacting confidentiality, integrity and availability of filtered content and user data.

2. Technical Explanation

The remote WebTitan web interface uses a default username (‘admin’) and password (‘hiadmin’). This allows an attacker to bypass normal authentication procedures and access the administrative panel without valid credentials. There is no known CVE associated with this specific issue, but it falls under CWE-798: Use of Hardcoded Credentials. An attacker could simply attempt to log in using these default credentials from any web browser. Affected versions are those shipped with default settings; updates may remove or prompt for changes to these credentials.

• Root cause: The application ships with, and allows operation with, insecure default login credentials.
• Exploit mechanism: An attacker attempts to log in using the ‘admin’ username and ‘hiadmin’ password via the web interface. Successful authentication grants administrative access.
• Scope: WebTitan web applications running with default credentials are affected. Specific versions should be checked against vendor documentation.

3. Detection and Assessment

You can confirm vulnerability by attempting to log in using the default credentials. A thorough assessment involves reviewing all WebTitan instances for use of these defaults.

• Quick checks: Attempt to login via the web interface with username ‘admin’ and password ‘hiadmin’.
• Scanning: Nessus plugin ID 16483 may identify this issue, but results should be manually verified.
• Logs and evidence: Check WebTitan logs for successful logins from source IP addresses that are not expected or known administrators.

curl -u admin:hiadmin http://your_webtitan_ip/login 

4. Solution / Remediation Steps

Change the default login credentials for the WebTitan web interface immediately. These steps must be completed to secure the application.

4.1 Preparation

• A change window may be needed depending on service impact and internal policies; approval from a system owner is recommended.

4.2 Implementation

1. Step 1: Log into the WebTitan web interface using the default credentials (‘admin’ / ‘hiadmin’).
2. Step 2: Navigate to the ‘Administration’ or ‘System Settings’ section of the web interface (exact location varies by version).
3. Step 3: Locate the user account settings for the administrator account.
4. Step 4: Change the password for the ‘admin’ account to a strong, unique value.
5. Step 5: Save the changes and log out of the web interface.

4.3 Config or Code Example

Before

Username: admin
Password: hiadmin

After

Username: your_new_username
Password: your_strong_password 

4.4 Security Practices Relevant to This Vulnerability

Practices that directly address this vulnerability include enforcing strong passwords and regularly reviewing default credentials. Least privilege is also important to limit the impact of a compromised account.

• Practice 1: Implement a policy requiring strong, unique passwords for all administrative accounts to reduce the risk of brute-force attacks.
• Practice 2: Regularly review and update default credentials on all systems and applications.

4.5 Automation (Optional)

Automation is not generally recommended due to the need for secure password management. However, configuration management tools can be used to enforce a policy requiring password changes upon initial setup.

# Example Ansible task - requires secure vaulting of new password
- name: Ensure WebTitan admin password is changed
  command: /path/to/webtitan_password_change_script your_new_password
  become: true 

5. Verification / Validation

• Post-fix check: Attempt to login via the web interface with username ‘admin’ and password ‘hiadmin’. Expect a failed authentication attempt.
• Re-test: Repeat the quick check from Section 3; it should no longer succeed.
• Smoke test: Verify that legitimate administrators can still log in using their new credentials and access all expected features.
• Monitoring: Monitor WebTitan logs for failed login attempts with the ‘admin’ username to identify potential brute-force attacks.

curl -u admin:hiadmin http://your_webtitan_ip/login 

6. Preventive Measures and Monitoring

Update security baselines to include a check for default credentials. Implement CI/CD pipeline checks to prevent deployment of systems with default settings. A regular patch review cycle is also important.

• Baselines: Update your security baseline or policy (for example, CIS control 1.2) to require changing default credentials on all new systems.
• Pipelines: Add checks in CI/CD pipelines to scan for default passwords and prevent deployment of vulnerable configurations.
• Asset and patch process: Implement a regular review cycle for system configurations to identify and remediate any instances of default credentials.

7. Risks, Side Effects, and Roll Back

• Risk or side effect 1: Incorrectly configured new password may result in loss of administrative access; ensure correct credentials are recorded and tested.
• Risk or side effect 2: Service interruption if changes cause unexpected issues; plan during a maintenance window.
• Roll back:
  1. Step 1: Restore the WebTitan virtual machine from the pre-change snapshot or backup.
  2. Step 2: Verify that administrative access is restored using the default credentials.

8. References and Resources

• Vendor advisory or bulletin: WebTitan Knowledge Base
• NVD or CVE entry: Not applicable for this specific issue.
• Product or platform documentation relevant to the fix: WebTitan Documentation