Pulse Secure Desktop
CVE-2018-7572
MEDIUM
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A07:2025 - Authentication Failures
ASVS 5.0
V6 - Authentication Authentication mechanism validation
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 2 tactics: Defense Evasion, Initial Access The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Impact | CVSS score of 6.8 (MEDIUM). Attack characteristics: physical attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction not required. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker could exploit this vulnerability to bypass authentication mechanisms to gain unauthorized access. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability. |
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Alert meAnalysisAI
Pulse Secure Client 9.0R1 and 5.3RX before 5.3R5, when configured to authenticate VPN users during Windows Logon, can allow attackers to bypass Windows authentication and execute commands on the. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
RemediationAI
No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Implement multi-factor authentication, enforce strong password policies, use proven authentication frameworks.
Affects your stack
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Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
This vulnerability is classified as Improper Authentication (CWE-287), which allows attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms to gain unauthorized access. Pulse Secure Client 9.0R1 and 5.3RX before 5.3R5, when configured to authenticate VPN users during Windows Logon, can allow attackers to bypass Windows authentication and execute commands on the system with the privileges of Pulse Secure Client. The attacker must interrupt the client's network connectivity, and trigger a connection to a crafted proxy server with an invalid SSL certificate that allows certification-manager access, leading to the ability to browse local files and execute local programs. Affected products include: Pulsesecure Pulse Secure Desktop. Version information: before 5.3.
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Severity by source
AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.
CVSS VectorNVD
DescriptionNVD
Pulse Secure Client 9.0R1 and 5.3RX before 5.3R5, when configured to authenticate VPN users during Windows Logon, can allow attackers to bypass Windows authentication and execute commands on the system with the privileges of Pulse Secure Client. The attacker must interrupt the client's network connectivity, and trigger a connection to a crafted proxy server with an invalid SSL certificate that allows certification-manager access, leading to the ability to browse local files and execute local programs.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.
Affected Products (CPE)NVD
More in Pulse Secure Desktop
View allPulse Secure Desktop before 5.2R2 and Pulse Secure Installer Service before 8.2R2 and below for Windows allow restricted
Pulse Secure Desktop Client 9.0Rx before 9.0R5 and 9.1Rx before 9.1R4 on Windows reveals users' passwords if Save Settin
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
GitHub PoC
Exploit-DB