CVE-2021-41995
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2021-41995 is a vulnerability in PingID Mac Login that allows attackers to bypass multi-factor authentication through pre-computed dictionary attacks against RSA misconfigurations. This affects organizations using PingID Mac Login for macOS authentication prior to version 1.1. Successful exploitation enables unauthorized access to protected systems without valid MFA credentials.
💻 Affected Systems
- PingID Mac Login
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete MFA bypass allowing unauthorized access to all protected macOS systems, potentially leading to data exfiltration, privilege escalation, and lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Targeted attackers gain access to specific macOS endpoints, potentially compromising user accounts and accessing sensitive data on vulnerable systems.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper network segmentation and monitoring, though MFA protection is still compromised for affected systems.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires attacker to have captured authentication data and perform offline dictionary attacks against RSA implementation.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 1.1 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://docs.pingidentity.com/bundle/pingid/page/hnh1653583508549.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download PingID Mac Login version 1.1 or later from official Ping Identity portal. 2. Install the update on all affected macOS systems. 3. Restart systems to ensure changes take effect. 4. Verify successful installation and functionality.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable PingID Mac Login
macOSTemporarily disable the vulnerable PingID Mac Login component until patching can be completed.
sudo launchctl unload /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.pingidentity.pingidmaclogin.plist
sudo rm -rf /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.pingidentity.pingidmaclogin.plist
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement additional network segmentation to isolate vulnerable macOS systems from critical resources.
- Enable enhanced logging and monitoring for authentication attempts on affected systems to detect potential exploitation.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check the installed version of PingID Mac Login by examining the application version in /Applications/PingID Mac Login.app or checking system logs for version information.Check Version:
defaults read /Applications/PingID\ Mac\ Login.app/Contents/Info.plist CFBundleShortVersionStringVerify Fix Applied:
Verify that PingID Mac Login version is 1.1 or higher and that authentication functions correctly with MFA requirements enforced.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Multiple failed authentication attempts followed by successful login without proper MFA validation
- Unusual authentication patterns from unexpected locations or times
Network Indicators:
- Authentication traffic patterns inconsistent with normal MFA flow
- Unencrypted or improperly formatted authentication packets
SIEM Query:
source="macos_auth.log" AND (event="authentication_failure" OR event="authentication_success") AND app="PingID Mac Login" | stats count by user, src_ip