CVE-2018-8902
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in Ivanti Avalanche for all versions between 5.3 and 6.2. The impacted products used a single shared key encryption model to encrypt data. A user with access to system databases can use the discovered key to access potentially confidential stored data, which may include Wi-Fi passwords. This discovered key can be used for all instances of the product.
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 · moderate confidenceIvanti Avalanche versions 5.3-6.2 use a single hardcoded encryption key across all product instances. Anyone with database access can decrypt stored confidential data including Wi-Fi passwords using this shared key.
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>= 5.3, <= 6.2CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Ivanti Avalanche installed versionLocate the version number through the Avalanche administration console (typically Help > About), check Windows Programs and Features, or review installer logs and metadata.Affected if The installed version falls within the range 5.3 to 6.2 (inclusive)
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Confirm version is in affected rangeCompare your identified version against the known vulnerable range. Any version from 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 6.0, 6.1, or 6.2 contains the same hardcoded encryption key.Affected if Version is >= 5.3 AND <= 6.2
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Identify database storage locationDetermine where Avalanche stores its database. This is typically a SQL Server database or SQLite file. Check the Avalanche server configuration or documentation for the database connection path.Affected if Database exists and version is within affected range (the hardcoded key applies to all stored encrypted data)
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Assess who has database accessReview database user accounts, permissions, and network accessibility. Check if the database file or SQL instance is accessible to users beyond the intended administrators.Affected if Any untrusted user can access the database and version is affected, allowing decryption of stored data like Wi-Fi passwords
If Ivanti Avalanche version 5.3 through 6.2 is installed, the hardcoded encryption key is present and any user with database access can decrypt stored confidential data including Wi-Fi passwords.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataUpdate to a patched version beyond 6.2 and rotate all encryption keys and exposed credentials (particularly Wi-Fi passwords) that may have been accessed using the discovered key.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-8902 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-8902 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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