CVE-2018-6707 in McAfee
Summary
by MITRE
Denial of Service through Resource Depletion vulnerability in the agent in non-Windows McAfee Agent (MA) 5.0.0 through 5.0.6, 5.5.0, and 5.5.1 allows local users to cause DoS, unexpected behavior, or potentially unauthorized code execution via knowledge of the internal trust mechanism.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/19/2023
The CVE-2018-6707 vulnerability represents a critical denial of service weakness within McAfee Agent versions 5.0.0 through 5.0.6 and 5.5.0 through 5.5.1, specifically affecting non-Windows systems. This vulnerability stems from the agent's internal trust mechanism that governs how the system validates and processes security-related communications. The flaw manifests when local users exploit knowledge of this trust mechanism to manipulate system resources in ways that disrupt normal operational functionality. The vulnerability operates at a fundamental level within the agent's architecture, leveraging its internal validation processes to create cascading effects that can result in complete system disruption. This represents a significant concern for enterprise security environments where McAfee Agent serves as a critical component for endpoint protection and management.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves exploitation of the agent's trust validation system, which typically operates under the assumption that internal processes and communications are legitimate. When local users understand the specific mechanisms used for trust verification, they can craft malicious inputs or commands that cause the agent to consume excessive system resources or enter unstable states. This resource depletion can manifest through memory exhaustion, CPU overutilization, or file system corruption, depending on how the trust mechanism is designed to handle validation failures. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple denial of service to potentially enabling unauthorized code execution, as the compromised trust mechanism may allow malicious code to bypass normal security controls. This aligns with CWE-400, which categorizes resource exhaustion vulnerabilities as a primary concern for system stability and availability.
The operational impact of CVE-2018-6707 is severe for organizations relying on McAfee Agent for endpoint protection, as it can lead to complete system unavailability and potential data compromise. Local users with knowledge of the internal trust mechanisms can cause unexpected behavior that may disrupt security monitoring, prevent legitimate administrative functions, and create conditions where unauthorized access becomes possible. The vulnerability's potential for unauthorized code execution creates additional attack surface that could be leveraged by more sophisticated threat actors. Organizations may experience cascading failures as compromised agents affect broader network security operations, particularly in environments where the agent serves as a communication hub for security policies and threat responses. This vulnerability directly impacts the availability and integrity of security infrastructure, making it a high-priority concern for enterprise security teams.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-6707 should focus on immediate patching of affected McAfee Agent versions, with particular attention to the specific builds mentioned in the vulnerability description. Organizations should implement monitoring for unusual resource consumption patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, as well as review and restrict local user privileges where possible. The implementation of additional security controls around agent communication and trust validation can help reduce the impact of potential exploitation. Security teams should consider implementing network segmentation to limit the potential spread of attacks originating from compromised agents, and establish incident response procedures specifically addressing agent-based vulnerabilities. Regular vulnerability assessments should include evaluation of trust mechanisms and internal validation processes to identify similar weaknesses in other security tools. The ATT&CK framework's T1499 technique for network denial of service and T1059 for command and scripting interfaces provides relevant context for understanding how this vulnerability might be exploited in real-world scenarios. Organizations should also review their patch management processes to ensure timely deployment of security updates and consider implementing automated vulnerability scanning to identify unpatched systems.