CVE-2015-2759 in Data Loss Prevention Endpoint
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerabilities in the ePO extension in McAfee Data Loss Prevention Endpoint (DLPe) before 9.3 Patch 4 Hotfix 16 (9.3.416.4) allow remote attackers to hijack the authentication of users for requests that (1) obtain sensitive information or (2) modify the database via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/02/2022
The CVE-2015-2759 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within the ePO extension of McAfee Data Loss Prevention Endpoint software. This vulnerability exists in versions prior to 9.3 Patch 4 Hotfix 16, specifically affecting the 9.3.416.4 release and earlier. The flaw resides in the authentication handling mechanism of the extension component that manages endpoint protection policies and configurations. Attackers can exploit this weakness to manipulate authenticated sessions and execute unauthorized actions against the targeted system. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of request origins and lack of proper anti-CSRF token implementation within the web interface components of the extension.
The technical exploitation of this CSRF vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of legitimate user sessions within the McAfee DLP environment. Attackers can craft malicious web requests that, when executed by an authenticated user, will perform actions within the context of that user's session. The vulnerability affects two primary categories of operations: information disclosure and database modification. When exploited, these flaws enable attackers to extract sensitive data from the DLP system, potentially including endpoint configurations, policy settings, and security event logs. Additionally, the vulnerability allows for database modifications that could alter protection policies, disable security features, or manipulate the underlying threat intelligence databases. The unspecified vectors suggest that the attack surface includes multiple interface components within the ePO extension that lack proper CSRF protection mechanisms.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-2759 extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as it compromises the integrity and confidentiality of the entire DLP environment. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can gain unauthorized access to critical security infrastructure, potentially leading to data exfiltration, policy manipulation, and complete bypass of endpoint protection mechanisms. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on McAfee DLP for endpoint security, creating a significant risk to data protection strategies. The attack requires minimal technical expertise to execute, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by threat actors with basic web application attack knowledge. This vulnerability directly impacts the security posture of organizations by weakening their endpoint protection capabilities and potentially allowing lateral movement within compromised networks.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including applying the available patches from McAfee, specifically version 9.3 Patch 4 Hotfix 16 or later. Network segmentation and monitoring of suspicious web requests can provide additional defense layers. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which categorizes cross-site request forgery flaws as critical security weaknesses in web applications. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving privilege escalation and persistence through manipulation of security software configurations. Security teams should also consider implementing web application firewalls and monitoring for unusual patterns in DLP extension API calls. Regular security assessments of web-based management interfaces and proper session management practices should be enforced to prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in other components of the security infrastructure.