1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

CVSS v3 8.3
ATTENTION: Low attack complexity
Vendor: Johnson Controls Inc.
Equipment: IQ Wifi 6
Vulnerability: Improper Restriction of Excessive Authentication Attempts

2. RISK EVALUATION

Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an unauthorized user to gain account access by conducting a brute force authentication attack.

3. TECHNICAL DETAILS

3.1 AFFECTED PRODUCTS

The following Johnson Controls products are affected:

IQ Wifi 6: All firmware versions prior to 2.0.2

3.2 VULNERABILITY OVERVIEW

3.2.1 Improper Restriction of Execssive Authentication Attempts CWE-307

In firmware versions prior to v2.0.2 of Johnson Controls IQ Wifi 6, an unauthorized user could gain account access by conducting a brute force authentication attack.

CVE-2023-3548 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3 base score of 8.3 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:L).

3.3 BACKGROUND

Critical Infrastructure Sectors: Critical Manufacturing
Countries/Areas Deployed: Worldwide
Company Headquarters Location: Ireland

3.4 RESEARCHER

Johnson Controls, Inc. reported this vulnerability to CISA.

4. MITIGATIONS

Johnson Controls recommends apply the following mitigations to reduce the risk:

Upgrade IQ Wifi 6 firmware to version 2.0.2. (Contact Johnson Controls for assistance)
The firmware update will be pushed to all available devices in the field.
The firmware update can also be manually loaded by applying the patch tag “iqwifi2.0.2” on the device after navigating to its firmware update page.

For additional information, see Johnson Controls Product Security Advisory JCI-PSA-2023-06 v1.

CISA recommends users take defensive measures to minimize the risk of exploitation of this vulnerability. Specifically, users should:

Secure physical access.
Minimize network exposure for all control system devices and/or systems, and ensure they are not accessible from the Internet.
Locate control system networks and remote devices behind firewalls and isolate them from business networks.
When remote access is required, use secure methods, such as virtual private networks (VPNs), recognizing VPNs may have vulnerabilities and should be updated to the most current version available. Also recognize VPN is only as secure as its connected devices.

CISA reminds organizations to perform proper impact analysis and risk assessment prior to deploying defensive measures.

CISA also provides a section for control systems security recommended practices on the ICS webpage at cisa.gov/ics. Several CISA products detailing cyber defense best practices are available for reading and download, including Improving Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity with Defense-in-Depth Strategies.

Additional mitigation guidance and recommended practices are publicly available on the ICS webpage at cisa.gov/ics in the technical information paper, ICS-TIP-12-146-01B–Targeted Cyber Intrusion Detection and Mitigation Strategies.

Organizations observing suspected malicious activity should follow established internal procedures and report findings to CISA for tracking and correlation against other incidents.

No known public exploits specifically target this vulnerability.