CVE-2021-47742
Epic · Epic Multiple Products
A high-severity vulnerability has been identified in the game Rocket League, which could allow a remote, unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code on a player's machine.
Executive summary
A high-severity vulnerability has been identified in the game Rocket League, which could allow a remote, unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code on a player's machine. Successful exploitation could lead to a complete system compromise, enabling an attacker to steal sensitive data, install malware, or use the compromised system to launch further attacks against the network. Due to the vulnerability's severity and the availability of public exploit code, immediate remediation is critical.
Vulnerability
This vulnerability is a heap-based buffer overflow within the Rocket League game client. An unauthenticated attacker on the same local network or with knowledge of the victim's IP address can send a specially crafted UDP packet to the game client. When the client processes this malicious packet, it can cause a buffer overflow, allowing the attacker to corrupt memory and execute arbitrary code on the victim's system with the same privileges as the user running the game.
Business impact
This vulnerability is rated as High severity with a CVSS score of 8.8. If an employee is running an affected version of Rocket League on a corporate device, a successful exploit could have a severe business impact. An attacker could gain a foothold into the corporate network, leading to potential data breaches, theft of intellectual property, deployment of ransomware, or disruption of business operations. The compromised machine could be used as a pivot point to attack other internal systems, bypassing perimeter security controls and escalating the incident significantly.
Remediation
Immediate Action: Organizations must apply the security updates provided by the vendor to all affected systems immediately. After patching, system administrators should monitor for any signs of exploitation attempts by reviewing endpoint security logs, network traffic, and application access logs for any anomalous activity related to the Rocket League application.
Proactive Monitoring: Implement enhanced monitoring focused on endpoints where the affected software is installed. Security teams should look for:
- Unusual network traffic patterns originating from or directed to the Rocket League executable, especially from unknown or untrusted IP addresses.
- Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) alerts for suspicious process creation, memory manipulation, or unauthorized file modification originating from the game process.
- Application crash logs or memory dumps that may indicate memory corruption exploitation attempts.
Compensating Controls: If immediate patching is not feasible, the following compensating controls should be implemented:
- Network Segmentation: Isolate workstations used for gaming from critical business networks to limit the potential lateral movement of an attacker.
- Host-Based Firewall: Configure host-based firewalls to restrict inbound connections to the game client, allowing traffic only from trusted sources where possible.
- Principle of Least Privilege: Ensure users do not run the game with administrative privileges, which would limit an attacker's capabilities post-exploitation.
Exploitation status
Public Exploit Available: true
Analyst recommendation
Given the high severity (CVSS 8.8), the risk of remote code execution, and the public availability of exploit code, this vulnerability poses a critical risk to the organization. We strongly recommend that the vendor-supplied patches be applied on an emergency basis to all systems running the affected software. Furthermore, organizations should review and enforce policies regarding the installation and use of non-business software, such as games, on corporate assets to mitigate future risks.