Researchers from Qualys have discovered a new vulnerability in open-source software, dubbed "regreSSHion." According to the researchers, this bug could potentially be as widespread and dangerous as Heartbleed or Log4j. This bug affects the OpenSSH server, which organizations widely use to secure communications and manage remote access.
The timing of this discovery is particularly concerning as many companies are understaffed during the Fourth of July week, which may delay the necessary patches to prevent potential attacks.
Qualys researchers identified that the regreSSHion bug allows attackers to gain complete control over systems running the affected OpenSSH code. The flaw, with a severity score of 8.1 out of 10, compromises how systems authenticate user identities. While OpenSSH has released a fix for the issue, updates to the latest version are required immediately to ensure protection.
On Monday, over 14 million instances of the vulnerable OpenSSH tool were identified online. Hackers exploiting this flaw could install malware, manipulate data, and create backdoors for ongoing access to corporate networks. Although exploiting the bug is challenging and requires multiple attempts, advancements in deep learning could facilitate faster and more efficient exploitations.
The regreSSHion bug has the potential to be as pervasive as Heartbleed, a 2014 vulnerability that affected approximately 500,000 websites using an open-source encryption tool. This comparison underscores the gravity of the situation, with experts closely monitoring the situation to assess the full impact of this new security threat.