CVE-2022-37907 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting Hewlett Packard Enterprise's ArubaOS bootloader on the 7xxx series controllers, which include Aruba Mobility Conductor (formerly Mobility Master), Aruba Mobility Controllers, WLAN Gateways, and SD-WAN Gateways managed by Aruba Central. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-400, indicating a resource exhaustion or denial of service (DoS) condition. Specifically, an attacker with high privileges and network access can trigger a system hang in the bootloader, causing the impacted controller to become unresponsive. Recovery from this state requires a manual power cycle, as the system does not recover automatically. The CVSS v3.1 score is 5.8 (medium), with the vector AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H, meaning the attack can be performed remotely over the network but requires high attack complexity and privileges, no user interaction, and impacts availability with a scope change. No known exploits are currently in the wild, and no patches or mitigations have been explicitly linked in the provided data. The vulnerability affects critical network infrastructure devices that manage wireless LAN and SD-WAN environments, which are essential for enterprise connectivity and network segmentation. The bootloader is a low-level component responsible for initializing hardware and loading the operating system, so a hang at this stage results in a complete loss of device functionality until a manual reboot is performed. This vulnerability does not affect confidentiality or integrity but can cause significant operational disruption due to loss of network availability.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2022-37907 can be significant, especially for enterprises and service providers relying on Aruba 7xxx series controllers for their wireless and SD-WAN infrastructure. A successful DoS attack can disrupt network connectivity, affecting business-critical applications, remote access, and cloud services. This can lead to operational downtime, reduced productivity, and potential financial losses. In sectors such as finance, healthcare, manufacturing, and government, where network availability is crucial, such disruptions could impair service delivery and incident response capabilities. Additionally, the requirement for a manual power cycle to recover increases the mean time to repair (MTTR), potentially extending downtime if the affected devices are in remote or difficult-to-access locations. Since the vulnerability requires high privileges, it implies that attackers would need to have already compromised internal network segments or administrative credentials, which raises concerns about insider threats or lateral movement by advanced persistent threats (APTs). The scope change in the CVSS vector suggests that the attack could affect multiple components or connected systems, potentially amplifying the impact across the network infrastructure managed by Aruba Central.

1. Restrict administrative access: Limit network access to Aruba controllers and management interfaces to trusted administrators only, using network segmentation and strong access control lists (ACLs). 2. Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all privileged accounts to reduce the risk of credential compromise. 3. Monitor network traffic and device logs for unusual activity that could indicate attempts to exploit the vulnerability or privilege escalation. 4. Establish rapid incident response procedures to detect and respond to device hangs, including remote monitoring and alerting for device availability. 5. Where possible, deploy redundant controllers and failover mechanisms to minimize service disruption during a device outage. 6. Regularly review and update device firmware and software; although no patch link is provided, stay informed via Hewlett Packard Enterprise advisories for any released updates addressing this vulnerability. 7. Limit exposure of management interfaces to the internet or untrusted networks to reduce the attack surface. 8. Conduct periodic security audits and penetration testing focusing on privilege escalation and DoS scenarios within the network infrastructure.