SUMMARY

The management console for Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager does not properly handle external XML data, which could potentially allow unauthorized access to restricted server-side data and console management functionality.

The management console for Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager does not sufficiently sanitize local queries made against the backend database which could lead an authorized but malicious user to attempt further compromise of the application.

AFFECTED PRODUCTS

ISSUES

NOTE:  NOTE: The potential to leverage the remote access XXE vulnerability to attempt to exploit the local access SQL Injection issues increases the overall severity from a successful exploit of these issues. Symantec customers need to apply the available updates, SEPM 11.0 RU7-MP4a (11.0.7405.1424), SEPM 12.1 RU4a SBE (12.1.4023.4080), SEPM 12.1 RU4a (12.1.4023.4080) as soon as possible.

MITIGATION

Details

Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager does not properly handle external XML data being sent to the management console via TCP port 9090 (HTTP) and port 8443(HTTPS).   This could potentially allow a malicious individual unauthorized access to sensitive server-side files and functionality.

Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager does not sufficiently sanitize local queries made against the database. A malicious individual who has or can gain access to the Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager management console could potentially inject arbitrary SQL database queries to further compromise the application.

In a recommended installation, the Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager server should not be accessible external to the network which should provide some mitigation against external attacks of this nature. However, a malicious individual could leverage known methods of trust exploitations such as cross-site request forgery in an attempt to gain network/system access.  These exploitation attempts generally require enticing a previously authenticated user to access a malicious link in a context such as a website or in an email.

The potential to leverage the remote access XXE vulnerabilities to facilitate successful attacks against the local access SQL Injection issues increases the overall severity of a successful attack against the application.  A successful attack could potentially allow application-level access to the system.

Symantec Response
Symantec product engineers verified these issues and have released updates to resolve them. Customers should apply the available updates to Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager 11.0 and 12.1.  Symantec is not aware of exploitation of or adverse customer impact from these issues.

Update Information

Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager update versions 11.0 RU7-MP4a (11.0.7405.1424) and 12.1 RU4a (12.1.4023.4080) are available from Symantec File Connect.

Mitigations

Administrators may configure a host- or network-based firewall to block or restrict ports 9090 and 8443 to Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager.  

NOTE:  Blocking port 9090 will deny access to online help and other web-based features. Blocking port 8443 will deny access to all remote consoles, replication, and Symantec Network Access Control Enforcer communication.

Administrators may configure firewall rules to allow access to port 9090 or 8443 from explicit hosts or IP addresses to enable these features.

For additional details and examples on the mitigation options, please see the following Knowledge Base article:  TECH214866 "SYM14-004 Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager vulnerabilities".

Best Practices
As part of normal best practices, Symantec strongly recommends the following:

• Restrict access to administrative or management systems to authorized privileged users.
• Restrict remote access, if required, to trusted/authorized systems only.
• Run under the principle of least privilege where possible to limit the impact of potential exploit.
• Keep all operating systems and applications current with vendor patches.
• Follow a multi-layered approach to security. At a minimum, run both firewall and anti-malware applications to provide multiple points of detection and protection to both inbound and outbound threats.
• Deploy network- and host-based intrusion detection systems to monitor network traffic for signs of anomalous or suspicious activity. This may aid in the detection of attacks or malicious activity related to the exploitation of latent vulnerabilities.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Symantec thanks Stefan Viehböck (discovery, analysis, coordination) and Johannes Greil (coordination) from the SEC Consult Vulnerability Lab (https://www.sec-consult.com/) for reporting these issues and working with us as we addressed them.

REFERENCES

BID: Security Focus, http://www.securityfocus.com, has assigned Bugtraq IDs (BIDs) to these issues for inclusion in the Security Focus vulnerability database.

CVE: These issues are candidates for inclusion in the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for security problems.