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Vcenter ServerApplication · VMware

CVE-2019-5537

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-10-28
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
Sensitive information disclosure vulnerability resulting from a lack of certificate validation during the File-Based Backup and Restore operations of VMware vCenter Server Appliance (6.7 before 6.7u3a and 6.5 before 6.5u3d) may allow a malicious actor to intercept sensitive data in transit over FTPS and HTTPS. A malicious actor with man-in-the-middle positioning between vCenter Server Appliance and a backup target may be able to intercept sensitive data in transit during File-Based Backup and Restore operations.

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

A lack of certificate validation in VMware vCenter Server Appliance's File-Based Backup and Restore operations (versions 6.7 before 6.7u3a and 6.5 before 6.5u3d) allows man-in-the-middle attackers to intercept sensitive data transmitted over FTPS and HTTPS during backup and restore processes.

MitigationUpgrade vCenter Server Appliance to version 6.7u3a or 6.5u3d or later to implement proper certificate validation, or ensure backup target communications use trusted certificates and network segmentation to reduce MITM exposure.

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
Vcenter ServerApplication
Affected:= 6.5= 6.7

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
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/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 checks

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

  1. Identify vCenter Server Appliance version
    Log into the vCenter Server Appliance management interface (https://appliance_ip:5480) and navigate to Summary, or run 'vpxd -v' via SSH to retrieve the exact version build number.
    Affected if The installed version is 6.5 (any build before 6.5u3d) or 6.7 (any build before 6.7u3a). Compare your build number to the fixed releases.
  2. Verify File-Based Backup is configured
    Access the vCenter Server Appliance management portal, go to Backup > Backup Scheduler, or check the /opt/vmware/appliance/backups/ configuration directory. Determine if any backup schedules exist using the File-Based Backup functionality.
    Affected if File-Based Backup schedules are configured and active, exposing the system to the vulnerability during backup/restore operations.
  3. Check backup transfer protocol settings
    In the Backup > Backup Scheduler configuration, examine the protocol setting for configured backup jobs. Look for FTPS or HTTPS transfer method selections in the backup destination configuration.
    Affected if The backup destination uses FTPS or HTTPS as the transfer protocol, which are the affected protocols for this certificate validation flaw.
  4. Inspect backup destination configuration
    Review the backup job destination URL or hostname configuration in the vCenter Server Appliance backup settings. Determine if the backup target is an external FTP/FTPS server or uses HTTPS-based backup transfer.
    Affected if The backup target is configured to use FTPS or HTTPS protocols, which lack proper certificate validation in the affected versions.

A user is affected if the vCenter Server Appliance runs version 6.5 before build 6.5u3d or 6.7 before build 6.7u3a AND File-Based Backup/Restore is configured to use FTPS or HTTPS protocols.

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 vCenter Server Appliance to version 6.7u3a or 6.5u3d or later to implement proper certificate validation, or ensure backup target communications use trusted certificates and network segmentation to reduce MITM exposure.

Fix this in Vcenter Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,160
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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-2019-5537 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
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