dbcve.org
Clearpass Policy ManagerApplication · Arubanetworks

CVE-2023-43506

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-10-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.9.13 / 6.10.8 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 Linux agent could allow malicious users on a Linux instance to elevate their user privileges to those of a higher role. A successful exploit allows malicious users to execute arbitrary code with root level privileges on the Linux instance.

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 · moderate confidence

ClearPass OnGuard Linux agent has a privilege escalation vulnerability allowing a local malicious user to elevate from regular user privileges to root, enabling arbitrary code execution with highest privileges.

MitigationApply vendor-provided patches for ClearPass OnGuard when released; restrict local user access to the OnGuard agent directories and processes until patched.

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:< 6.9.13>= 6.10.0, < 6.10.8>= 6.11.0, <= 6.11.4= 6.9.13= 6.10.8

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. Identify ClearPass Policy Manager version
    Run 'rpm -qa | grep -i clearpass' or check the installed package version via the package manager (dpkg/rpm depending on Linux distribution)
    Affected if The installed version matches one of the vulnerable ranges: < 6.9.13, 6.9.13, >= 6.10.0 through 6.10.8, or >= 6.11.0 through 6.11.4
  2. Confirm OnGuard Linux agent is installed
    Check for the presence of OnGuard agent packages or binaries, typically found in /opt/clearpass/onguard or via 'rpm -qa | grep onguard'
    Affected if The OnGuard Linux agent package is installed on the system
  3. Verify local user access exists
    Review system user accounts and group memberships to determine if non-privileged local users exist on the system
    Affected if Local user accounts with non-root privileges exist on the machine running the OnGuard agent

A system is affected if it runs a vulnerable version of ClearPass Policy Manager (within the listed version ranges) with the OnGuard Linux agent installed and has non-privileged local user accounts present.

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 6.9.13 / 6.10.8 or later
Fixed in 6.9.136.10.8
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-provided patches for ClearPass OnGuard when released; restrict local user access to the OnGuard agent directories and processes until patched.

Recommended fix High confidence

6.9.13 or later (6.9.x branch); 6.10.8 or later (6.10.x branch); 6.11.5 or later (6.11.x branch) - recommend latest stable release

  1. 1. Identify the current installed version of Clearpass Policy Manager by accessing the OnGuard Linux agent configuration.
  2. 2. Determine which upgrade path applies based on your current version (6.9.x, 6.10.x, or 6.11.x branch).
  3. 3. For 6.9.x branch: upgrade to version 6.9.13 or later.
  4. 4. For 6.10.x branch: upgrade to version 6.10.8 or later.
  5. 5. For 6.11.x branch: upgrade to version 6.11.5 or later.
  6. 6. Download the appropriate ClearPass Policy Manager upgrade from the Aruba Networks support portal.
  7. 7. Apply the upgrade following Aruba's standard upgrade procedures, ensuring to back up configuration data before proceeding.
  8. 8. After upgrade, verify the OnGuard Linux agent version and test privilege escalation prevention.
Caveat Standard ClearPass upgrade considerations apply - review upgrade guide for compatibility requirements and ensure configuration backup before proceeding

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
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.

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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-2023-43506 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