CVE-2024-23613
📋 TL;DR
A critical buffer overflow vulnerability in Symantec Deployment Solution 7.9 allows remote, unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary code with SYSTEM privileges by sending specially crafted UpdateComputer tokens. This affects organizations using Symantec Deployment Solution for software deployment and management. The vulnerability is remotely exploitable without authentication.
💻 Affected Systems
- Symantec Deployment Solution
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with SYSTEM privileges, enabling attacker persistence, lateral movement, data exfiltration, and deployment of ransomware or other malware across the network.
Likely Case
Remote code execution leading to installation of backdoors, credential theft, and deployment of additional payloads across managed endpoints.
If Mitigated
Attack blocked at network perimeter or detected before exploitation; limited to isolated systems if segmentation is in place.
🎯 Exploit Status
Detailed technical analysis and proof-of-concept code are publicly available. The vulnerability is straightforward to exploit due to the buffer overflow in token parsing.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check Broadcom/Symantec security advisory for specific patched version
Vendor Advisory: https://support.broadcom.com/security-advisory/content/security-advisories
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Check Broadcom/Symantec security advisory for the specific patch version
2. Download the patch from official vendor sources
3. Apply the patch following vendor instructions
4. Restart the Deployment Solution service and affected systems
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Network Segmentation
allRestrict network access to the Deployment Solution server to only trusted management systems
Configure firewall rules to block inbound traffic to Deployment Solution ports from untrusted networks
Service Account Privilege Reduction
windowsChange the service account from SYSTEM to a less privileged account (may impact functionality)
sc config "Symantec Deployment Solution" obj= "NT AUTHORITY\LocalService" password= ""
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate the Deployment Solution server in a dedicated VLAN with strict access controls
- Implement network monitoring and IDS/IPS rules to detect and block exploitation attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if Symantec Deployment Solution version 7.9 is installed and the axengine.exe service is runningCheck Version:
Check Deployment Solution console or installed programs list for version informationVerify Fix Applied:
Verify the installed version is updated to the patched version specified in the vendor advisory📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual process creation from axengine.exe
- Multiple failed UpdateComputer requests
- Crash logs for axengine.exe service
Network Indicators:
- Unusual traffic patterns to Deployment Solution ports
- Large or malformed UpdateComputer token requests
SIEM Query:
source="windows" AND process_name="axengine.exe" AND (event_id="4688" OR event_id="1000")