CVE-2024-25971 in PowerProtect Data Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 03/28/2024
Dell PowerProtect Data Manager, version 19.15, contains an XML External Entity Injection vulnerability. A remote high privileged attacker could potentially exploit this vulnerability, leading to information disclosure, denial-of-service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/28/2025
The CVE-2024-25971 vulnerability represents a critical XML External Entity Injection flaw within Dell PowerProtect Data Manager version 19.15, posing significant security risks to organizations relying on this data protection platform. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-611 category, which specifically addresses XML External Entity Injection weaknesses in software systems. The flaw exists in the application's processing of XML input data, where external entity references are not properly validated or restricted, creating an attack surface that malicious actors can exploit to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires a remote attacker with high privileged access to the system, though the impact extends beyond simple privilege levels due to the nature of XML processing within the application. When malformed XML data containing external entity references is processed by the PowerProtect Data Manager, the system attempts to resolve these external references, potentially leading to unauthorized data access or system resource exhaustion. This processing behavior creates a pathway for attackers to extract sensitive information from the underlying system or disrupt service availability through resource exhaustion attacks.
From an operational perspective, the vulnerability creates substantial risk for organizations using Dell PowerProtect Data Manager as their primary data protection solution. The potential for information disclosure means that attackers could access backup data, system configurations, or other sensitive information stored within the protected environment. Additionally, the denial-of-service component of this vulnerability could allow attackers to disrupt backup operations, potentially leaving organizations without critical data protection capabilities during incident response scenarios. The combination of these impacts makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where data integrity and availability are paramount.
The attack surface for this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007, which involves the use of external entities in XML processing to execute malicious payloads or extract information. Organizations should consider implementing network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure to this vulnerability, while also monitoring for suspicious XML processing activities that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation and secure coding practices in enterprise data protection systems, as the flaw exists in the fundamental data processing mechanisms used by the backup and recovery platform.
Mitigation strategies should include immediate deployment of Dell's security patches and updates for PowerProtect Data Manager version 19.15, along with comprehensive network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts. Organizations should also implement XML input validation mechanisms and restrict external entity resolution within their XML processing components. The vulnerability highlights the need for regular security assessments of backup and recovery systems, as these platforms often contain sensitive data and are frequently targeted by attackers seeking to disrupt business continuity operations. Additionally, implementing proper access controls and privilege management can help limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts, though the vulnerability's classification as high privileged indicates that even restricted access could still lead to significant compromise.