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Insider Threat ManagementApplication · Proofpoint

CVE-2021-22159

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-01-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.4.3 / 7.5.4 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Insider Threat Management Windows Agent Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability The Proofpoint Insider Threat Management (formerly ObserveIT) Agent for Windows before 7.4.3, 7.5.4, 7.6.5, 7.7.5, 7.8.4, 7.9.3, 7.10.2, and 7.11.0.25 as well as versions 7.3 and earlier is missing authentication for a critical function, which allows a local authenticated Windows user to run arbitrary commands with the privileges of the Windows SYSTEM user. Agents for MacOS, Linux, and ITM Cloud are not affected.

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 Proofpoint Insider Threat Management Windows agent lacks authentication for a critical function, enabling any locally authenticated Windows user to execute arbitrary commands with SYSTEM privileges. This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability stemming from missing access controls on a sensitive interface within the agent software.

MitigationUpgrade the Windows agent to version 7.11.0.25 or later (or minimum patched versions 7.4.3/7.5.4/7.6.5/7.7.5/7.8.4/7.9.3/7.10.2). This is a software update that should be deployed via the ITM management console following standard change management procedures.

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
Insider Threat ManagementApplication
Affected:< 7.4.3>= 7.5.0, < 7.5.4>= 7.6.0, < 7.6.5>= 7.7.0, < 7.7.5>= 7.8.0, < 7.8.4>= 7.9.0, < 7.9.3>= 7.10.0, < 7.10.2>= 7.11.0.0, < 7.11.0.25

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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. Verify Proofpoint ITM agent is installed
    Open Windows Programs and Features (appwiz.cpl) or check for the Proofpoint Insider Threat Management service in Services (services.msc). The service is typically named 'Proofpoint ITM Agent' or similar.
    Affected if The Proofpoint Insider Threat Management Windows agent is present on the system
  2. Identify the installed agent version
    Open Command Prompt or PowerShell and run: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*Proofpoint*'} | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion. Alternatively, right-click the agent in Programs and Features and select Properties to view the version.
    Affected if Unable to retrieve a version number - the agent may be installed but version data is inaccessible
  3. Compare against vulnerable version ranges
    Reference the version identified in step 2 against the affected ranges: < 7.4.3; >= 7.5.0, < 7.5.4; >= 7.6.0, < 7.6.5; >= 7.7.0, < 7.7.5; >= 7.8.0, < 7.8.4; >= 7.9.0, < 7.9.3; >= 7.10.0, < 7.10.2; >= 7.11.0.0, < 7.11.0.25
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of the listed vulnerable ranges
  4. Confirm local non-admin user access
    Verify that standard user accounts exist on the system. This vulnerability allows any locally authenticated Windows user (including standard users) to escalate to SYSTEM privileges through the unprotected agent interface.
    Affected if Standard (non-administrator) user accounts are present on the system and the agent version is vulnerable

The environment is affected if the Proofpoint Insider Threat Management Windows agent is installed and the installed version matches any of the vulnerable version ranges listed in the CVE.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 7.4.3 / 7.5.4 / 7.6.5 or later
Fixed in 7.4.37.5.47.6.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade the Windows agent to version 7.11.0.25 or later (or minimum patched versions 7.4.3/7.5.4/7.6.5/7.7.5/7.8.4/7.9.3/7.10.2). This is a software update that should be deployed via the ITM management console following standard change management procedures.

Fix this in Insider Threat Management Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,770
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,832.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2021-22159 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