Authentication Manager PrimeApplication · Emc

CVE-2016-0915

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2016-08-22
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
87/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
The Self-Service Portal in EMC RSA Authentication Manager (AM) Prime Self-Service 3.0 and 3.1 before 3.1 1915.42871 allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service (PIN change for an arbitrary user) via a modified token serial number within a PIN change request, related to a "direct object reference vulnerability."

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

This is an Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) vulnerability in EMC RSA Authentication Manager's Self-Service Portal. An authenticated attacker can manipulate the token serial number in a PIN change request to force a PIN change for any arbitrary user, causing denial of service by locking out the legitimate user.

MitigationUpgrade to RSA Authentication Manager version 3.1 build 1915.42871 or later. Additionally, implement proper server-side authorization validation to ensure authenticated users can only modify their own PINs, not those of other users.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Authentication Manager PrimeApplication
Affected:= 3.0= 3.1

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify RSA Authentication Manager installation
    Locate the EMC RSA Authentication Manager installation directory or check for the service/process running on the server. Common locations include /opt/rsa/am or C:\Program Files\RSA\Authentication Manager.
    Affected if The product is not installed or is a different product.
  2. Verify the installed version
    Check the installed version of EMC Authentication Manager Prime. This can typically be found in the admin console under System Settings > Server Settings, or by checking version files in the installation directory. Compare your version against the affected ranges: 3.0 and 3.1.
    Affected if The installed version is 3.0 or 3.1 (any build). Versions outside this range or the specific fixed build (1915.42871 or later) are NOT affected.
  3. Confirm Self-Service Portal is enabled
    Check if the Self-Service Portal component is enabled and accessible. This can be verified through the RSA Authentication Manager admin console under Access > Self-Service Portal, or by attempting to access the portal URL.
    Affected if The Self-Service Portal is enabled and accessible to users.
  4. Review audit logs for unauthorized PIN changes
    Examine the Security or Audit logs in the Authentication Manager console for PIN change requests where the target user differs from the authenticated requester. Look for patterns of PIN resets targeting multiple users in short succession.

You are affected only if RSA Authentication Manager Prime versions 3.0 or 3.1 are installed AND the Self-Service Portal is enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade to RSA Authentication Manager version 3.1 build 1915.42871 or later. Additionally, implement proper server-side authorization validation to ensure authenticated users can only modify their own PINs, not those of other users.

Fix this in Authentication Manager Prime Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-0915 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data