ConnectWise Vulnerability
This advisory is being provided to assist agencies and organizations in guarding against the persistent malicious actions of cybercriminals.
A critical vulnerability has been discovered in ConnectWise ScreenConnect which could allow threat actors with access to server-level cryptographic material used for authentication to obtain unauthorized access, including elevated privileges, in certain scenarios.
ConnectWise has released a security update for ScreenConnect that addresses issues related to how server-level cryptographic material is protected. Earlier versions of ScreenConnect stored unique machine keys per instance within server configuration files, which under certain conditions could allow unauthorized actors to extract this material and misuse it for session authentication. ScreenConnect version 26.1 introduces enhanced protections for machine key handling, including encrypted storage and management, reducing the risk of unauthorized access in scenarios where server integrity may be compromised.
Systems affected
- ScreenConnect version prior to 26.1
Recommendations
- Apply appropriate updates provided by ConnectWise to vulnerable systems immediately after appropriate testing.
- Apply the Principle of Least Privilege to all systems and services. Run all software as a non-privileged user (one without administrative privileges) to diminish the effects of a successful attack.
- Use vulnerability scanning to find potentially exploitable software vulnerabilities to remediate them.
- Use capabilities to detect and block conditions that may lead to or be indicative of a software exploit occurring.
- Architect sections of the network to isolate critical systems, functions, or resources. Use physical and logical segmentation to prevent access to potentially sensitive systems and information. Use a DMZ to contain any internet-facing services that should not be exposed from the internal network. Configure separate virtual private cloud (VPC) instances to isolate critical cloud systems.
- Use capabilities to detect and block conditions that may lead to or be indicative of a software exploit occurring.
References:
ConnectWise:
https://www.connectwise.com/
