CVE-2019-18581
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 · uneditedDell EMC Data Protection Advisor versions 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 18.2 versions prior to patch 83, and 19.1 versions prior to patch 71 contain a server missing authorization vulnerability in the REST API. A remote authenticated malicious user with administrative privileges may potentially exploit this vulnerability to alter the application’s allowable list of OS commands. This may lead to arbitrary OS command execution as the regular user runs the DPA service on the affected system.
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 confidenceDell EMC Data Protection Advisor contains a missing authorization vulnerability in its REST API where an authenticated remote attacker with administrative privileges can modify the application's OS command whitelist, leading to arbitrary OS command execution with the privileges of the service account running DPA.
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= 6.3= 6.4= 6.5= 18.1= 18.2= 19.1= 2.0= 2.1= 2.2= 2.3= 2.4CVSS 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify installed DPA versionCheck the Data Protection Advisor application version through its web UI (typically at /dpa/about or in the Help/About section) or via the installed software inventory on the server.Affected if The installed version matches 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 18.1, 18.2, or 19.1 for DPA, or 2.0 through 2.4 for Integrated Data Protection Appliance Firmware.
-
Confirm REST API is accessibleVerify that the DPA REST API endpoint is reachable. Typically accessible at https://<dpa-host>/dpa-api/ or similar paths under the DPA web interface.Affected if The REST API is exposed and responds to HTTP/HTTPS requests.
-
Verify administrative user existsCheck for user accounts with administrative privileges in DPA. This can be done through the DPA user management interface or by reviewing user configuration files if accessible.Affected if An administrative user account is configured and enabled in the DPA system.
-
Check OS command whitelist configurationIf you have access, examine the OS command whitelist configuration through the DPA administrative interface or REST API endpoints that manage command execution settings.Affected if The OS command whitelist configuration is accessible and modifiable through the REST API without additional authorization checks.
The environment is affected if a vulnerable version (6.3-6.5, 18.1-19.1 for DPA or 2.0-2.4 for IDPA) is installed and the REST API with administrative access is available, allowing unauthorized modification of the OS command whitelist.
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 dataApply vendor patches (patch 83 for version 18.2, patch 71 for version 19.1) or upgrade to patched versions. Implement proper authorization checks on REST API endpoints that modify OS command configurations.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,968.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-18581 — 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-2019-18581 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
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.
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.
- 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