CVE-2025-24501 in Symantec Privileged Access Management
Summary
by MITRE • 01/30/2025
An improper input validation allows an unauthenticated attacker to alter PAM logs by sending a specially crafted HTTP request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/05/2025
This vulnerability represents a critical weakness in authentication system logging mechanisms that directly impacts the integrity of security audit trails. The issue stems from insufficient validation of input data within the PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules) logging subsystem, allowing remote attackers to manipulate log entries without requiring authentication credentials. The vulnerability manifests when the system fails to properly sanitize or validate HTTP request parameters that are subsequently used to generate or modify log records within the PAM framework. This represents a classic example of input validation failure that can be categorized under CWE-20, which specifically addresses improper input validation in software systems. The attack vector leverages HTTP protocols to inject malicious data into the logging infrastructure, potentially enabling attackers to obscure their activities or create false log entries that could mislead security analysts during incident response operations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple log manipulation, as it fundamentally compromises the trustworthiness of authentication audit logs that security teams rely upon for monitoring and forensic analysis. When an unauthenticated attacker can alter PAM logs, they gain the ability to cover their tracks, create false positive entries, or inject misleading information that could obscure actual security incidents. This manipulation capability directly violates the principle of log integrity that is essential for effective security operations and compliance requirements. The vulnerability affects systems that utilize PAM modules for authentication and rely on HTTP-based interfaces for log management or monitoring functions, creating potential blind spots in security monitoring that could persist undetected for extended periods.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires an attacker to craft specific HTTP requests that target the PAM logging interface, typically involving parameters that control log entry creation or modification. The system's failure to validate these inputs means that malicious payloads can be directly inserted into log files, potentially including SQL injection patterns, command injection attempts, or crafted log entries designed to bypass security monitoring systems. This type of attack aligns with ATT&CK technique T1562.006, which covers "Impair Defenses: Impair Log Collection", and represents a significant threat to the availability and integrity of security information and event management (SIEM) systems that depend on reliable log data for threat detection. Organizations with robust security monitoring may be able to detect anomalous log patterns, but the sophistication of the attack and the potential for subtle manipulation make this vulnerability particularly dangerous.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing comprehensive input validation mechanisms within the PAM logging subsystem, including strict parameter sanitization and validation of all HTTP request data before processing. Organizations should deploy web application firewalls to monitor and filter HTTP requests targeting authentication interfaces, while also implementing proper access controls to limit log modification capabilities to authorized administrative users only. The implementation of immutable logging systems or write-once-read-many (WORM) storage solutions can provide additional protection against log tampering. Security teams should also establish monitoring rules specifically designed to detect suspicious log modification patterns and implement regular log integrity checks that can identify unauthorized changes to authentication logs. Compliance frameworks such as iso 27001 and pci dss require organizations to maintain the integrity of audit logs, making this vulnerability particularly concerning for regulated environments where log tampering could result in compliance violations and significant regulatory penalties.