dbcve.org
Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 3 May 2022. Known ransomware use
Connect SecureApplication · Ivanti

CVE-2019-11510

CRITICAL · 10.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-05-08
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild Ransomware High EPSS Public exploit Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

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
In Pulse Secure Pulse Connect Secure (PCS) 8.2 before 8.2R12.1, 8.3 before 8.3R7.1, and 9.0 before 9.0R3.4, an unauthenticated remote attacker can send a specially crafted URI to perform an arbitrary file reading 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

An unauthenticated remote arbitrary file reading vulnerability in Pulse Secure Pulse Connect Secure (PCS) allows attackers to send specially crafted URIs to read sensitive files from the underlying operating system, potentially exposing credentials, configuration data, or other confidential information.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches by upgrading to PCS versions 8.2R12.1, 8.3R7.1, or 9.0R3.4 or later. If patching is immediately infeasible, restrict external access to the PCS admin interface using network segmentation or firewall rules.

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
Connect SecureApplication
Affected:= 8.2= 8.3= 9.0

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/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 if Pulse Connect Secure is exposed
    Check if the Pulse Secure web interface is accessible on the VPN gateway (typically ports 443, 4443, or 8443). Look for the login page containing 'Pulse Connect Secure' or 'Ivanti Connect Secure' branding.
    Affected if The product is exposed and accessible from the network without network segmentation.
  2. Determine the installed version
    Access the admin console or check the system version via the web interface. The version is usually displayed on the login page or in the System > Status section. Alternatively, check the installed packages on the underlying system.
    Affected if The installed version is 8.2 before 8.2R12.1, 8.3 before 8.3R7.1, or 9.0 before 9.0R3.4.
  3. Review web server logs for exploitation attempts
    Examine the web server access logs (typically in /var/log/ or accessible via the admin interface) for requests containing path traversal patterns such as '/dana/html5acc/guacamole/..' or '/dana-na/..' followed by file paths like '/etc/passwd'.
  4. Check for unauthorized file access
    Review the system for recently accessed or downloaded sensitive files (such as /etc/passwd, /etc/shadow, configuration files, or SSL private keys) that were not initiated by legitimate administrators.

You are affected if Pulse Connect Secure (versions 8.2 pre-8.2R12.1, 8.3 pre-8.3R7.1, or 9.0 pre-9.0R3.4) is exposed to the network and either shows signs of exploitation in logs or has had sensitive files accessed without authorization.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Vendor patch kb.pulsesecure.net →
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches by upgrading to PCS versions 8.2R12.1, 8.3R7.1, or 9.0R3.4 or later. If patching is immediately infeasible, restrict external access to the PCS admin interface using network segmentation or firewall rules.

Recommended fix High confidence

8.2R12.1 (for 8.2 branch), 8.3R7.1 (for 8.3 branch), or 9.0R3.4 (for 9.0 branch)

  1. 1. Identify the current Pulse Connect Secure version by accessing the admin web interface or checking system diagnostics
  2. 2. Determine which version branch you are running (8.2.x, 8.3.x, or 9.0.x)
  3. 3. For systems running 8.2.x: upgrade to version 8.2R12.1 or later
  4. 4. For systems running 8.3.x: upgrade to version 8.3R7.1 or later
  5. 5. For systems running 9.0.x: upgrade to version 9.0R3.4 or later
  6. 6. After upgrading, verify the fix by attempting the vulnerable URI pattern or using a vulnerability scanner
  7. 7. Review the Pulse Secure release notes for the target version for any pre-upgrade prerequisites or post-upgrade configuration steps
  8. 8. Consider scheduling maintenance window as the upgrade may require brief downtime
Caveat Review release notes - some upgrades may require intermediate steps or have specific migration requirements

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Connect Secure Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
30.0 hours of engineering $5,280
Get it fixed fast

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,448.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-11510 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2019-11510 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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