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Insider Threat ManagementApplication · Proofpoint

CVE-2023-4801

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.14.3.69 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
An improper certification validation vulnerability in the Insider Threat Management (ITM) Agent for MacOS could be used by an anonymous actor on an adjacent network to establish a man-in-the-middle position between the agent and the ITM server after the agent has registered. All versions prior to 7.14.3.69 are affected. Agents for Windows, Linux, and Cloud are unaffected.

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 ITM Agent for macOS fails to properly validate certificates during communication with the ITM server, allowing an attacker on an adjacent network to intercept and manipulate traffic between the registered agent and server after initial registration. This enables man-in-the-middle attacks due to improper certificate chain validation or hostname verification.

MitigationUpgrade the ITM Agent for macOS to version 7.14.3.69 or later to remediate the certificate validation vulnerability. Windows, Linux, and Cloud agents do not require patching for this issue.

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:< 7.14.3.69

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
Adjacent
Complexity
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:H/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 the operating system is macOS
    Run 'uname -a' or check System Preferences to verify the OS is macOS, since this vulnerability only affects the macOS agent
    Affected if The system is running macOS with the ITM Agent installed
  2. Check if the ITM Agent for macOS is installed
    Look for the Proofpoint ITM Agent application in /Applications or check for the running process using Activity Monitor or the 'ps' command for an ITM-related process
    Affected if The Proofpoint ITM Agent for macOS is installed and running on the system
  3. Determine the installed version of the ITM Agent for macOS
    Use the application's built-in version check mechanism (such as selecting 'About' from the agent menu, running 'version' command if available, or checking the application's Info.plist)
    Affected if The installed version cannot be determined or is visible in the output
  4. Compare the installed version to the affected range
    Review the detected version number and compare it against the vulnerable range: versions prior to 7.14.3.69 are affected
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 7.14.3.69 (for example, 7.14.2.x, 7.13.x, or earlier)
  5. Verify the agent communicates with an ITM server
    Check if the agent is configured to communicate with an ITM server by inspecting network connections or the agent's configuration (if accessible)
    Affected if The agent is actively registered and communicating with an ITM server

A user is affected if they are running a Proofpoint ITM Agent for macOS with a version lower than 7.14.3.69 on a system that communicates with an ITM server.

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 7.14.3.69 or later
Fixed in 7.14.3.69
Interim mitigation

Upgrade the ITM Agent for macOS to version 7.14.3.69 or later to remediate the certificate validation vulnerability. Windows, Linux, and Cloud agents do not require patching for this issue.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

7.14.3.69 or later

  1. Identify all MacOS systems running Insider Threat Management (ITM) Agent versions prior to 7.14.3.69
  2. Download the ITM Agent version 7.14.3.69 or later from the Proofpoint portal or official distribution channel
  3. Deploy and install the updated ITM Agent on affected MacOS endpoints
  4. Verify the agent version after installation to confirm successful upgrade
  5. Ensure the upgrade is applied to all MacOS agents in the environment; Windows, Linux, and Cloud agents do not require patching for this vulnerability

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

Fix this in Insider Threat Management Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,360
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,176.

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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-2023-4801 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