CVE-2026-71171 in Cloud Disaster Recovery
Summary
by MITRE • 08/26/2026
Dell Cloud Disaster Recovery, versions 20.2 and prior, contain an Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') vulnerability in the REST API. A high privileged attacker with remote access could potentially exploit this vulnerability, leading to Remote execution.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/26/2026
The identified security flaw resides within Dell Cloud Disaster Recovery software, specifically affecting versions 20.2 and earlier iterations of the platform. This vulnerability is classified as an Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command, commonly referred to as Operating System or Command Injection. The core technical deficiency lies in the handling of user-supplied input by the REST API interface provided by the application. When processing requests, the software fails to adequately sanitize or validate specific elements before incorporating them into system-level commands executed on the underlying host operating system. This lack of rigorous input validation allows an attacker to inject malicious command sequences that are interpreted and executed directly by the OS shell rather than being treated as literal data strings intended for application logic.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential for Remote Code Execution. Because the REST API serves as a primary interface for managing disaster recovery operations, it is often exposed to network traffic beyond just local administrative access points. A high-privileged attacker who has obtained remote access credentials can leverage this flaw to execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the service account running the Dell Cloud Disaster Recovery application. This capability effectively bypasses standard authentication and authorization controls at the operating system level, granting the adversary full control over the compromised host. The attacker could install backdoors, exfiltrate sensitive data stored within the disaster recovery environment, pivot to other systems on the network, or disrupt critical business continuity operations by altering backup configurations or destroying existing snapshots.
From a threat modeling perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-78, which defines Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command. The exploitation vector corresponds to ATT&CK technique T1059, specifically sub-techniques related to command and script interpreters such as Windows Command Shell or Unix Shell depending on the underlying infrastructure. The requirement for a high privileged attacker indicates that while initial access might be restricted, once an adversary gains elevated credentials through phishing, credential theft, or other means, this vulnerability serves as a powerful escalation mechanism to achieve persistent remote execution without needing further privilege escalation exploits against the operating system kernel itself.
Mitigation strategies must prioritize immediate patching of all affected Dell Cloud Disaster Recovery instances to version 20.3 or later where these input validation checks have been hardened. In environments where updating is not immediately feasible, network-level controls should be implemented to restrict access to the REST API endpoints exclusively from trusted management subnets using firewalls and strict Access Control Lists. Additionally, implementing Web Application Firewalls with rules designed to detect common command injection patterns can provide a layer of defense in depth. It is also critical to enforce least privilege principles for service accounts associated with the application, ensuring that even if exploitation occurs, the scope of damage is limited by restricting file system and process execution permissions on the host operating system.