Clearpass Policy ManagerApplication · Arubanetworks

CVE-2022-43537

HIGH · 7.2 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 →
78/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable 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
Vulnerabilities in the ClearPass Policy Manager web-based management interface allow remote authenticated users to run arbitrary commands on the underlying host. Successful exploits could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary commands as root on the underlying operating system leading to complete system compromise 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

Authenticated command injection vulnerability in the ClearPass Policy Manager web-based management interface allows remote authenticated users to execute arbitrary OS commands with root privileges, leading to complete system compromise.

MitigationApply vendor patches: upgrade ClearPass Policy Manager 6.9.x to version 6.9.13 or later, and 6.10.x to version 6.10.8 or later. Restrict web management interface access to trusted networks and monitor for unauthorized administrative activity.

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify installed ClearPass Policy Manager version
    Log into the ClearPass CLI and run 'show version' or access the web interface and navigate to Administration » About to view the build version
    Affected if The installed version falls within 6.9.0 through 6.9.11, or 6.10.0 through 6.10.6 (versions below 6.9.12 or 6.10.7)
  2. Confirm web-based management interface is accessible
    Verify the ClearPass Policy Manager web interface (HTTPS on port 443 or custom configured port) is reachable from your network. Check if the service is running via CLI: 'show service' or '/opt/CPsums/bin/CPMySQL -N -e "select id from apache_info"'
    Affected if The web management interface is exposed and operational, making the command injection vector accessible
  3. Review administrator accounts for unauthorized changes
    From the web interface, go to Administration » Users & Privileges » Administrators and review account creation dates and privilege levels. Alternatively, export user audit logs via the CLI: 'show audit-logs | include Administrator'
    Affected if Unexpected administrator accounts exist, or audit logs show account creation/modification by unknown users, indicating potential exploitation
  4. Check for suspicious command execution in logs
    Review system logs for evidence of unexpected command execution. Run: 'show logs system' or check /var/log/audit/ for httpd error logs containing shell metacharacters or unusual API calls
    Affected if Logs contain suspicious API calls, shell command patterns, or unexpected system modifications originating from management interface sessions

Your environment is affected if ClearPass Policy Manager is running a version between 6.9.0-6.9.11 or 6.10.0-6.10.6 and the web management interface is accessible, as authenticated attackers could inject and execute arbitrary OS commands with root 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

Apply vendor patches: upgrade ClearPass Policy Manager 6.9.x to version 6.9.13 or later, and 6.10.x to version 6.10.8 or later. Restrict web management interface access to trusted networks and monitor for unauthorized administrative activity.

Recommended fix High confidence

ClearPass Policy Manager 6.9.12 or later (6.9.x branch); ClearPass Policy Manager 6.10.7 or later (6.10.x branch)

  1. Create a complete backup of the ClearPass Policy Manager configuration before starting the upgrade process
  2. Schedule a maintenance window as the upgrade will require downtime
  3. Download the appropriate upgrade image from Aruba Networks support portal: version 6.9.12 or later for 6.9.x branch, or version 6.10.7 or later for 6.10.x branch
  4. Upload the upgrade image through the ClearPass web-based management interface or CLI
  5. Follow Aruba's official upgrade documentation to complete the upgrade process
  6. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the ClearPass version in the web interface
  7. Confirm that all services are running properly after the upgrade
Caveat Standard security patch upgrade with minimal risk; always review Aruba release notes before upgrading

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

Fix this in Clearpass Policy Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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-2022-43537 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