dbcve.org
Clearpass Policy ManagerApplication · Arubanetworks

CVE-2022-43535

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-01-05
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.9.12 / 6.10.7 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
A vulnerability in the ClearPass OnGuard Windows agent could allow malicious users on a Windows instance to elevate their user privileges. A successful exploit could allow these users to execute arbitrary code with NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM level privileges on the Windows instance in Aruba ClearPass Policy Manager version(s): ClearPass Policy Manager 6.10.x: 6.10.7 and below and ClearPass Policy Manager 6.9.x: 6.9.12 and below.

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 local privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the ClearPass OnGuard Windows agent that allows malicious users on a Windows instance to execute arbitrary code with NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM privileges. The vulnerability stems from improper privilege handling within the agent's operation on Windows systems.

MitigationUpgrade ClearPass OnGuard Windows agent to version 6.10.8 or later (for 6.10.x branches) or version 6.9.13 or later (for 6.9.x branches) to remediate this vulnerability.

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
Clearpass Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 6.9.0, < 6.9.12>= 6.10.0, < 6.10.7

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
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 ClearPass OnGuard agent is installed
    Open Services (services.msc) and look for a service named 'ClearPass OnGuard' or 'Aruba OnGuard' or check registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for entries containing 'ClearPass' or 'OnGuard'
    Affected if No matching service or registry entry is found, indicating the agent is not installed
  2. Identify installed OnGuard agent version
    Right-click the OnGuard executable (commonly in C:\Program Files\Aruba\ClearPass OnGuard\ or C:\Program Files\Aruba Networks\ClearPass OnGuard\) and select Properties, then check the Details tab for the Product Version; alternatively, run 'wmic product where "name like '%ClearPass%'" get version' or check the registry key under the Uninstall entry
    Affected if Unable to retrieve version information
  3. Compare version against affected ranges
    Compare the installed version number to the affected ranges: 6.9.0 through 6.9.11 (any version >= 6.9.0 but < 6.9.12) and 6.10.0 through 6.10.6 (any version >= 6.10.0 but < 6.10.7)
    Affected if Version falls within 6.9.0 to < 6.9.12 OR 6.10.0 to < 6.10.7
  4. Confirm agent service runs under elevated context
    In Services, double-click the OnGuard service and check the 'Log on as' setting; also observe if the process runs as SYSTEM or a privileged account in Task Manager Details tab
    Affected if Service is configured to run with elevated privileges (Local System or similar) which is the expected behavior for this agent but indicates exposure to the privilege escalation flaw

User is affected if ClearPass OnGuard Windows agent is installed and the installed version falls within 6.9.0 to < 6.9.12 or 6.10.0 to < 6.10.7, enabling a malicious user with local access to execute code with SYSTEM privileges.

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 6.9.12 / 6.10.7 or later
Fixed in 6.9.126.10.7
Interim mitigation

Upgrade ClearPass OnGuard Windows agent to version 6.10.8 or later (for 6.10.x branches) or version 6.9.13 or later (for 6.9.x branches) to remediate this vulnerability.

Recommended fix High confidence

ClearPass Policy Manager 6.9.12 or 6.10.7 (depending on your current branch)

  1. Identify the currently installed ClearPass Policy Manager version by checking the About page in the ClearPass web interface or via CLI: show version
  2. If running version 6.9.x (6.9.0 through 6.9.11), upgrade to ClearPass Policy Manager 6.9.12 or later
  3. If running version 6.10.x (6.10.0 through 6.10.6), upgrade to ClearPass Policy Manager 6.10.7 or later
  4. Download the appropriate upgrade image from the Aruba Support Portal (https://asp.arubanetworks.com)
  5. Follow Aruba's standard upgrade procedure: backup the configuration, upload the new image, and execute the upgrade via the web interface or CLI
  6. After upgrade, verify the ClearPass OnGuard Windows agent version and confirm the system is running the patched release

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

Fix this in Clearpass Policy Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
21.0 hours of engineering $3,680
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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-2022-43535 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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