CVE-2017-14935 in Pulse Secure Pulse One On-Premise
Summary
by MITRE
Pulse Secure Pulse One On-Premise 2.0.1649 and below does not properly validate requests, which allows remote users to query and obtain sensitive information.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/20/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-14935 affects Pulse Secure Pulse One On-Premise versions 2.0.1649 and earlier, representing a critical security flaw in the company's remote access solution. This issue stems from inadequate input validation mechanisms within the application's request processing pipeline, creating a pathway for unauthorized information disclosure. The affected system operates as a network access control solution that typically manages secure remote connections for enterprise environments, making it a prime target for adversaries seeking to compromise network security boundaries.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the application's failure to properly validate incoming HTTP requests, specifically those directed at administrative or sensitive endpoints. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious requests that bypass normal access controls and authentication mechanisms. The vulnerability manifests as a lack of proper sanitization and validation of user-supplied input parameters, allowing attackers to manipulate request URLs and access restricted resources without proper authorization. This flaw aligns with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation as a fundamental weakness in software security design. The vulnerability essentially creates a bypass mechanism that allows unauthenticated access to sensitive data through carefully constructed HTTP requests.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-14935 extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it can potentially enable further exploitation within compromised environments. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can access sensitive configuration data, user credentials, system logs, and other confidential information that should remain protected within the secure network perimeter. This information disclosure can serve as a foundation for more sophisticated attacks, including privilege escalation, lateral movement, and persistent access within the target network. The vulnerability's remote exploitability means that attackers can leverage this weakness from outside the network without requiring physical access or initial compromise of internal systems, making it particularly dangerous for organizations relying on remote access solutions for their workforce.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigation strategies to protect their network infrastructure. The most effective approach involves upgrading to Pulse Secure Pulse One On-Premise version 2.0.1650 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address the input validation weakness. Additionally, network administrators should implement firewall rules to restrict access to sensitive endpoints and deploy intrusion detection systems to monitor for suspicious request patterns. The mitigation strategy should also include disabling unnecessary administrative interfaces and implementing strict access controls to limit the attack surface. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation in security-critical applications and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1071.004, which covers application layer protocol usage for data exfiltration. Organizations should also conduct comprehensive security assessments to identify similar validation weaknesses in other network infrastructure components and ensure that all remote access solutions maintain proper input sanitization mechanisms to prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in the future.