CVE-2024-8963: Ivanti CSA Path Traversal Vulnerability

CVE-2024-8963 Overview

Path Traversal in the Ivanti CSA before 4.6 Patch 519 allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to access restricted functionality.

Critical Impact
This vulnerability is critically severe, allowing unauthenticated attackers to exploit path traversal to manipulate or access restricted files. It holds a CVSS score of 9.1.

Affected Products

Ivanti Endpoint Manager Cloud Services Appliance 4.6
Ivanti Endpoint Manager Cloud Services Appliance 4.6 Patch 512
Ivanti Endpoint Manager Cloud Services Appliance 4.6 Patch 518

Discovery Timeline

2024-09-19 - CVE CVE-2024-8963 published to NVD
2025-10-24 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-8963

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability stems from insufficient sanitization of user input, leading to a path traversal condition. Attackers can craft requests that exploit this flaw to access arbitrary files within the application context.

Root Cause

Failure to properly validate and sanitize input paths allows attackers to traverse directories.

Attack Vector

Accessible over the network without authentication, this vulnerability can be exploited remotely.

python

# Example exploitation code (sanitized)
import requests

url = "http://victim-server.com/file"
params = {'file': '../../etc/passwd'}
response = requests.get(url, params=params)
print(response.text)

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-8963

Indicators of Compromise

Unusual log file access patterns
Suspicious file retrieval activities
Unexpected files accessed by non-admin entities

Detection Strategies

Utilize file access monitoring by analyzing logs for traversal patterns such as ../. Implement intrusion detection systems (IDS) rules to alert on indicative path traversal payloads.

Monitoring Recommendations

Regularly review web server logs for suspicious entry points and directory traversal sequences. Implement alerts for path manipulation attempts.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-8963

Immediate Actions Required

Limit network exposure of vulnerable services
Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block suspicious inputs
Monitor for exploit attempts using IDS/IPS

Patch Information

Ivanti has released a patch for this vulnerability in version 4.6 Patch 519. Update all affected CSA installations immediately.

Workarounds

If immediate patching is not possible, deploy strict validation and sanitization checks on all user-supplied input.

bash

# Configuration example for Apache to prevent path traversal
<Directory />
    Options None
    AllowOverride None
    Require all denied
</Directory>