Skip to main content

ClearPass Policy Manager EUVDEUVD-2026-93890

| CVE-2026-79803 HIGH
Command Injection (CWE-77)
2026-10-06 security-alert@hpe.com GHSA-2h4r-fr3h-ff6g
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: hpe
View

Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Authenticate with low-privilege API credentials
  2. Delivery
    Send crafted API request with injected OS command
  3. Exploit
    Trigger command injection in API handler
  4. Execution
    Execute commands on appliance OS
  5. Impact
    Escalate to administrative control

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization Command injection prevention
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Execution

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires the attacker to already hold valid low-privilege authenticated access to the ClearPass Policy Manager API (CVSS PR:L); it is not reachable by a fully unauthenticated attacker. Given that precondition, no user interaction and no special non-default configuration are indicated in the description - the flaw is in the API itself, so any deployment exposing the ClearPass management/API interface to an attacker-reachable network is affected. The primary limiting factors defenders can rely on are the authentication requirement and restricting network reachability of the management/API plane; the specific vulnerable API endpoint and affected versions are not enumerated in the provided data and should be confirmed from the HPE advisory.

Impact

This is a genuine high-priority issue for organizations running ClearPass Policy Manager, though not a drop-everything emergency absent evidence of active exploitation. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, base 8.8) describes a low-complexity, network-reachable attack requiring only low-privileged authentication and no user interaction, yielding full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact - consistent with the description's claim of privilege escalation to administrative control. The key risk amplifier is that ClearPass is a network access control (NAC) appliance sitting at a security-critical chokepoint, so administrative compromise is high-consequence. However, signals that would elevate urgency are absent from the input: no EPSS score was provided, KEV status is not indicated (treat as not listed), and no public exploit is referenced. The mitigating factor is the PR:L authentication requirement - an attacker must first possess valid low-privilege API credentials, which bounds the realistic attacker population to authenticated users, credential-theft scenarios, or chained access. In short: a real priority to patch given the appliance's sensitivity and low attack complexity, but with exploitation-probability data (EPSS) missing, urgency ranking should lean on the authentication precondition and the absence of confirmed in-the-wild activity rather than treating this as mass-exploited.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker holding or obtaining low-privilege credentials for the ClearPass Policy Manager API sends a crafted request whose parameter smuggles an operating-system command into a vulnerable API handler, which executes it on the underlying appliance. By chaining this command execution, the attacker escalates from a limited API user to full administrative control of the NAC system. No public exploit code is identified in the provided data, so this scenario is inferred from the command-injection class and the CVSS vector rather than a known POC.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.7% exploitation probability (EPSS)

Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.

Alert me

AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 06, 2026

Command injection in the ClearPass Policy Manager API allows an authenticated remote attacker holding only low-privilege credentials to execute arbitrary commands and escalate to administrative control of the affected appliance, with high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CVSS 8.8). The vulnerability is network-reachable and requires no user interaction, but it is not exploitable by a fully unauthenticated attacker - valid low-privilege API access is a hard precondition. At time of analysis there is no public exploit identified, and no evidence of active exploitation (no CISA KEV listing); the risk is rated high-priority for organizations running the product but not an emergency absent exploitation signals.

RemediationAI

The authoritative fix information is the HPE security bulletin at https://support.hpe.com/hpesc/public/docDisplay?docId=hpesbnw05158en_us&docLocale=en_US, which should be consulted for the exact patched ClearPass Policy Manager release; the provided data does not enumerate a fix version, so no patched build number should be assumed. Until the vendor-released update is applied, the most effective compensating controls follow directly from the assessed exploit prerequisites: restrict network reachability of the ClearPass management/API interface using firewall rules, management VLANs, or IP allowlists so that only trusted administrative hosts can reach it - this is low-cost and highly effective given the flaw requires existing API access, with the trade-off that remote and third-party integrations relying on the API must be re-homed or proxied. Review and minimize accounts holding API access, remove or disable unused service accounts, and enforce least privilege on API roles so that few principals satisfy the PR:L precondition; this reduces but does not eliminate exposure, since any low-privilege account can still trigger the flaw. Audit ClearPass API access, authentication, and audit logs for anomalous command-like input or unexpected administrative changes, and alert on privilege or role modifications, as there is no patch-independent signature for command injection inside an authenticated API. Deploying an authenticating reverse proxy or WAF in front of the API adds input-inspection and logging but introduces false-positive and evasion trade-offs and should be considered defense-in-depth rather than a fix. Note that shell access to the underlying host should be treated as compromised if the vulnerability is successfully exploited, so post-exploitation credential rotation and host integrity validation are warranted after any suspected abuse.

Affected VersionsENISA

ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM) 6.14.0 ≤6.14.0
ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM) 6.11.0 ≤6.11.15

Affected Packages

euvd clearpass_policy_manager_cppm no fix

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

ClearPass Policy Manager is HPE Aruba Networking's network access control (NAC) and policy enforcement platform; its management API is used for configuration, guest/device onboarding, role mapping, and integration with other infrastructure. The flaw is a command injection issue in that API surface: user-supplied input reaching the API is passed into a system/command execution context without adequate neutralization, so an authenticated caller can run arbitrary operating-system commands under the privileges of the API service. The CVSS 3.1 vector AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H confirms remote exploitability with low attack complexity, a low-privilege authenticated precondition (PR:L), no user interaction, unchanged scope, and full compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. No CWE identifier was supplied, so the root-cause class is not formally mapped in the source data; the described behavior - command injection through an application interface - is consistent with OS command injection (CWE-78), and the absence of an S:C scope change indicates the impact is contained to the ClearPass host rather than cascading to other components as a security-authority change, though administrative control of a NAC policy server is itself a significant blast-radius concern given its role in network access decisions.

Know when Aruba gets its next vulnerability

  • Watch products and get an email when something new is published
  • Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

No credit card · 7-day full trial

Severity by source

Vendor (hpe) PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 8.8 HIGH

API is network-reachable (AV:N) with low complexity; a low-privilege authenticated account is required (PR:L), and command injection to admin control yields full C/I/A.

3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (hpe).

CVSS VectorVendor: hpe

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionCVE.org

A command injection vulnerability exists in the API of ClearPass Policy Manager. Successful exploitation could allow an authenticated remote attacker to escalate privileges and gain administrative control of the affected system.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

ClearPass Policy Manager is affected by a high-severity command injection flaw in its API that could let an attacker with valid low-privilege API credentials take administrative control of the appliance, potentially disrupting network access control and policy enforcement across the organization. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, and no vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis, so leadership should treat this as a priority mitigation effort for teams managing ClearPass infrastructure. Organizations relying on ClearPass for identity and network access decisions should act quickly to limit exposure until a fix is released.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis; interim mitigations include restricting API access to trusted management networks, enforcing least privilege and rotating credentials, disabling unused API endpoints, enabling detailed logging and monitoring, and segmenting ClearPass appliances from untrusted networks.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.7%
Top 47% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
widely used enterprise NAC appliance, but vendor-specific, not ubiquitous
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

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.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.7%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
No
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

45
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

OS command injection occurs when an application passes unsanitized user input directly into system shell commands.

More in Aruba

View all
CVE-2024-26304 CRITICAL POC
9.8 May 01

There is a buffer overflow vulnerability in the underlying L2/L3 Management service that could lead to unauthenticated r

CVE-2024-26305 CRITICAL
9.8 May 01

There is a buffer overflow vulnerability in the underlying Utility daemon that could lead to unauthenticated remote code

CVE-2021-25162 HIGH POC
8.1 Mar 30

A remote execution of arbitrary commands vulnerability was discovered in some Aruba Instant Access Point (IAP) products

CVE-2026-76742 CRITICAL
9.8 Oct 06

Unauthenticated remote attackers can bypass authentication in the web management interface of HPE AOS-S (ArubaOS-Switch)

CVE-2015-4650 CRITICAL
9.8 Oct 16

Aruba Networks ClearPass Policy Manager before 6.4.7 and 6.5.x before 6.5.2 allows remote attackers to gain shell access

CVE-2014-6626 CRITICAL
10.0 Nov 19

Aruba Networks ClearPass before 6.3.6 and 6.4.x before 6.4.1 does not properly restrict access to unspecified administra

CVE-2015-1389 MEDIUM POC
4.3 May 28

Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Aruba Networks ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM) before 6.4.5 allows remote at

CVE-2014-5342 CRITICAL
10.0 Nov 19

Aruba Networks ClearPass before 6.3.5 and 6.4.x before 6.4.1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via u

CVE-2021-25159 MEDIUM POC
6.5 Mar 30

A remote arbitrary file modification vulnerability was discovered in some Aruba Instant Access Point (IAP) products in v

CVE-2021-25155 MEDIUM POC
6.5 Mar 30

A remote arbitrary file modification vulnerability was discovered in some Aruba Instant Access Point (IAP) products in v

CVE-2026-76747 CRITICAL
9.1 Oct 06

Unauthenticated remote attackers can trigger buffer overflows in an interface of HPE Aruba AOS-S (ArubaOS-Switch) that i

CVE-2022-37897 CRITICAL
9.8 Dec 12

There is a command injection vulnerability that could lead to unauthenticated remote code execution by sending specially

This site uses cookies essential for authentication and security. No tracking or analytics cookies are used. Privacy Policy