Executive Summary

This vulnerability exists in DSAI-Cline's command auto-approval module, which is designed to automatically approve certain commands based on a whitelist. The module attempts to block dangerous command operators like ;, &&, ||, |, and command substitution patterns by parsing input strings. However, it fails to detect raw newline characters embedded within the input.

An attacker can exploit this by inserting a newline character between a whitelisted command and malicious code. Because the system does not recognize the newline as a separator, it mistakenly approves the entire input as safe. The underlying PowerShell interpreter then treats the newline as a command separator and executes both the safe and malicious commands sequentially.

This results in Remote Code Execution (RCE) without any user interaction, effectively bypassing the whitelist security mechanism.

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Impact Analysis

This vulnerability can have severe impacts because it allows an attacker to execute arbitrary commands remotely without user interaction.

By exploiting the newline injection, an attacker can run malicious code on the affected system, potentially leading to unauthorized access, data theft, system compromise, or disruption of services.

Since the whitelist mechanism is bypassed, traditional command filtering protections are ineffective, increasing the risk of exploitation.

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Compliance Impact

The vulnerability allows remote code execution by bypassing the whitelist security mechanism, which could lead to unauthorized access or control over the affected system.

Such unauthorized access or control can result in exposure, alteration, or destruction of sensitive data, potentially violating data protection regulations like GDPR and HIPAA.

Therefore, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to compliance with common standards and regulations that require strict access controls and protection of sensitive information.

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Detection Guidance

Detection of this vulnerability involves monitoring for command inputs that include raw newline characters embedded between whitelisted commands and additional commands, which bypass the whitelist mechanism.

One approach is to inspect logs or command inputs for suspicious patterns such as commands containing newline characters (\n) that separate a whitelisted command from unexpected or malicious commands.

• Use command-line tools like grep to search for newline characters in command inputs or logs, for example: grep -P '\n' /path/to/command/logs
• Monitor PowerShell command execution logs for sequences where a whitelisted command is followed by another command separated by a newline.
• Implement network monitoring to detect unusual command execution patterns or unexpected command sequences that could indicate exploitation attempts.

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Mitigation Strategies

Immediate mitigation steps include updating or patching the DSAI-Cline software to a version that addresses the command auto-approval module vulnerability.

If an update is not immediately available, consider disabling or restricting the command auto-approval feature to prevent automatic execution of potentially malicious commands.

Enhance input validation to properly handle and sanitize newline characters within commands to prevent bypassing the whitelist mechanism.

Monitor and audit command executions closely to detect and respond to suspicious activity promptly.

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