CVE-2019-12751 in Messaging Gateway
Summary
by MITRE
Symantec Messaging Gateway, prior to 10.7.1, may be susceptible to a privilege escalation vulnerability, which is a type of issue whereby an attacker may attempt to compromise the software application to gain elevated access to resources that are normally protected from an application or user.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/12/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-12751 affects Symantec Messaging Gateway versions prior to 10.7.1, representing a critical privilege escalation flaw that undermines the security posture of email gateway systems. This vulnerability falls under the Common Weakness Enumeration category CWE-269, which specifically addresses improper privileges assigned to security-relevant attributes, making it a significant concern for organizations relying on email security infrastructure. The flaw enables attackers to exploit insufficient access controls or inadequate privilege management within the messaging gateway software, potentially allowing unauthorized users to elevate their privileges and gain access to protected resources.
The technical implementation of this privilege escalation vulnerability stems from inadequate validation of user permissions and access controls within the Symantec Messaging Gateway application. Attackers can leverage this weakness to bypass normal authentication mechanisms and escalate their access level from standard user privileges to administrative or system-level access. This typically occurs when the application fails to properly verify the privileges of users attempting to perform sensitive operations, or when there are insufficient checks in place to prevent unauthorized privilege elevation. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple access control bypass, as it can potentially allow attackers to modify email policies, access sensitive email content, or manipulate the gateway's configuration settings.
From an operational perspective, the exploitation of CVE-2019-12751 poses severe risks to enterprise email security infrastructure, particularly in environments where Symantec Messaging Gateway serves as a central point of email control and filtering. Organizations may face significant data exposure risks, as attackers with elevated privileges could access confidential email communications, modify email routing rules, or disable security features. The vulnerability also creates opportunities for persistent access within the network, as attackers can establish backdoors or maintain long-term presence within the email infrastructure. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers the use of elevated privileges to gain access to system resources and maintain persistence.
Security organizations should prioritize immediate remediation of this vulnerability through the application of Symantec's official patches and updates, specifically targeting the 10.7.1 release or later versions that contain the necessary fixes. The mitigation strategy should include comprehensive network monitoring to detect any suspicious privilege escalation attempts and implementation of principle of least privilege access controls. Additionally, organizations should conduct thorough security assessments of their email infrastructure to identify any other potential privilege escalation vulnerabilities that may exist within their broader security ecosystem. Regular vulnerability scanning and penetration testing should be implemented to ensure ongoing detection of similar weaknesses in email security solutions and prevent exploitation attempts that could compromise sensitive email communications and organizational data assets.