CVE-2022-43554
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2022-43554 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Ivanti Avalanche Smart Device Service where missing authentication allows local attackers to execute arbitrary code with SYSTEM privileges. This affects organizations using Ivanti Avalanche for mobile device management. Attackers must have local access to the vulnerable system.
💻 Affected Systems
- Ivanti Avalanche
📦 What is this software?
Avalanche by Ivanti
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Local attacker gains full SYSTEM privileges, enabling complete system compromise, data theft, lateral movement, and persistence establishment.
Likely Case
Local user or malware with initial access escalates to SYSTEM to install additional malware, disable security controls, or access sensitive data.
If Mitigated
With proper network segmentation and least privilege, impact limited to isolated system; attacker cannot pivot to other systems.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires local access but authentication bypass makes exploitation straightforward once local access obtained.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 6.4.1.236
Vendor Advisory: https://download.wavelink.com/Files/avalanche_v6.4.1.236_release_notes.txt
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download Ivanti Avalanche version 6.4.1.236 or later from Ivanti portal. 2. Backup current configuration. 3. Run installer with administrative privileges. 4. Restart system after installation completes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict Local Access
windowsLimit local login to Avalanche servers to authorized administrators only using Windows security policies.
Network Segmentation
allIsolate Avalanche servers in separate network segment with strict access controls.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict local access controls and monitor for unauthorized local logins
- Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) to detect privilege escalation attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Ivanti Avalanche version in Control Panel > Programs and Features or via 'wmic product get name,version' command.Check Version:
wmic product where "name like '%Avalanche%'" get name,versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 6.4.1.236 or higher and test local privilege escalation attempts fail.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Windows Event Logs showing unexpected SYSTEM privilege acquisition
- Process creation from non-admin users with SYSTEM privileges
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from Avalanche server post-local access
SIEM Query:
source="WinEventLog:Security" EventID=4688 NewProcessName="*" SubjectUserName!="SYSTEM" TokenElevationType="%%1938"