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Vrealize OperationsApplication · VMware

CVE-2020-3943

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-02-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.6.1 / 6.7.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
vRealize Operations for Horizon Adapter (6.7.x prior to 6.7.1 and 6.6.x prior to 6.6.1) uses a JMX RMI service which is not securely configured. An unauthenticated remote attacker who has network access to vRealize Operations, with the Horizon Adapter running, may be able to execute arbitrary code in vRealize 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

The vRealize Operations for Horizon Adapter (versions 6.7.x before 6.7.1 and 6.6.x before 6.6.1) exposes a misconfigured JMX RMI service that allows unauthenticated network attackers to execute arbitrary code remotely without any credentials.

MitigationUpgrade the Horizon Adapter to version 6.7.1 or 6.6.1 (or later), or disable the Horizon Adapter if not required, to remediate the insecure JMX RMI configuration.

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
Vrealize OperationsApplication
Affected:>= 6.6.0, < 6.6.1>= 6.7.0, < 6.7.1

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

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

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

  1. Confirm vRealize Operations is installed
    Locate the vRealize Operations installation directory or check for the vRealize Operations Manager service running on the system. Common installation paths: /var/log/vmware/vcops/ or C:\Program Files\VMware\vRealize Operations Manager\
    Affected if vRealize Operations software is present on the system
  2. Identify Horizon Adapter version
    Access the vRealize Operations admin UI, navigate to Administration > Solutions, and locate the Horizon Adapter entry. Record the exact version number displayed, or check the adapter package version in the installation directory under adapters/horizon/
    Affected if The Horizon Adapter version is 6.6.0 (any build before 6.6.1) or 6.7.0 (any build before 6.7.1)
  3. Verify JMX RMI service is listening
    Run netstat or ss commands to check for listening ports associated with JMX RMI. Common ports: 8999, 9000, or custom RMI registry ports. Execute: netstat -anp | grep -E '(8999|9000)' or check for Java JMX processes
    Affected if Ports typically used for JMX RMI (8999, 9000, or dynamic RMI ports) are open and listening on network interfaces
  4. Confirm Horizon Adapter is enabled
    In vRealize Operations admin UI, navigate to Administration > Solutions and verify the Horizon Adapter status shows as Active or Enabled. Alternatively, check adapter configuration files in the installation directory for enabled=true
    Affected if The Horizon Adapter is in an Active or Enabled state in the vRealize Operations environment

If vRealize Operations with Horizon Adapter versions 6.6.0 through 6.6.0.x or 6.7.0 through 6.7.0.x is installed, enabled, and the JMX RMI service is exposed on network ports, the environment is vulnerable to unauthenticated remote code execution.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 6.6.1 / 6.7.1 or later
Fixed in 6.6.16.7.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade the Horizon Adapter to version 6.7.1 or 6.6.1 (or later), or disable the Horizon Adapter if not required, to remediate the insecure JMX RMI configuration.

Recommended fix High confidence

vRealize Operations 6.6.1 or 6.7.1

  1. Verify the current version of vRealize Operations by checking the vRealize Operations Manager admin UI or using the vROps API
  2. Confirm that the Horizon Adapter is enabled in your deployment
  3. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade process
  4. Back up the vRealize Operations environment including all collected data and configurations
  5. Download vRealize Operations 6.6.1 or 6.7.1 (whichever is the appropriate version for your environment) from the VMware download portal
  6. Follow VMware's standard upgrade procedure for vRealize Operations - this typically involves using the vRealize Operations Manager upgrade wizard
  7. After upgrade, verify that vRealize Operations services start successfully
  8. Validate that the Horizon Adapter is functioning correctly post-upgrade

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

Fix this in Vrealize Operations Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,580
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,128.

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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-2020-3943 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