Honeywell CCTV Systems Vulnerable to Account Takeovers and Unauthorized Access

Critical Vulnerabilities in Honeywell CCTV Products Expose Networks to Attack

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has disclosed a critical vulnerability in Honeywell’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) products that could enable account takeovers and unauthorized access to camera feeds. The flaw, detailed in ICS Advisory ICSA-26-048-04, allows unauthenticated attackers to manipulate recovery email addresses, potentially leading to broader network compromise.

Technical Details

The vulnerability affects Honeywell’s CCTV systems, though specific product models and versions are not disclosed in the advisory. Exploitation requires no authentication, making it particularly severe. An attacker could:

• Modify the recovery email address associated with user accounts.
• Gain unauthorized access to camera feeds, compromising physical security monitoring.
• Escalate privileges within the network, potentially leading to further lateral movement or data exfiltration.

CISA’s advisory references the Common Security Advisory Framework (CSAF) document for additional technical context, though no CVE ID is currently assigned to this flaw.

Impact Analysis

The vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations relying on Honeywell CCTV systems for physical security:

• Unauthorized Surveillance: Attackers could access live or recorded camera feeds, exposing sensitive areas or operations.
• Account Compromise: By hijacking recovery emails, threat actors could reset passwords and take control of user accounts.
• Network Infiltration: Successful exploitation may serve as an entry point for deeper network penetration, particularly in operational technology (OT) environments.

Recommendations for Security Teams

CISA urges organizations using Honeywell CCTV products to:

1. Review the Advisory: Consult ICS Advisory ICSA-26-048-04 for updates on affected products and mitigation guidance.
2. Apply Patches: Monitor Honeywell’s official channels for firmware updates addressing the vulnerability.
3. Segment Networks: Isolate CCTV systems from critical network segments to limit lateral movement risks.
4. Monitor for Suspicious Activity: Implement logging and alerting for unauthorized changes to account recovery settings or unusual access patterns.
5. Enforce Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Where possible, enable MFA to reduce the risk of account takeovers.

CISA has not reported active exploitation of this vulnerability in the wild, but organizations should treat it as a high-priority risk due to its low attack complexity and high impact.