CVE-2025-61304: Dynatrace Activegate Ping Extension RCE

CVE-2025-61304 Overview

CVE-2025-61304 is a critical OS command injection vulnerability affecting Dynatrace ActiveGate ping extension versions up to 1.016. The vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary operating system commands through a crafted IP address parameter. This flaw stems from improper input validation in the ping extension component, enabling attackers to inject malicious commands that are executed with the privileges of the ActiveGate service.

Critical Impact

This vulnerability enables unauthenticated remote attackers to achieve full system compromise through command injection, potentially leading to complete confidentiality, integrity, and availability loss on affected systems running Dynatrace ActiveGate.

Affected Products

• Dynatrace ActiveGate Ping Extension versions up to and including 1.016

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-11-05 - CVE-2025-61304 published to NVD
• 2026-01-08 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-61304

Vulnerability Analysis

The OS command injection vulnerability (CWE-78) exists within the Dynatrace ActiveGate ping extension's handling of IP address input. When a user-supplied IP address is passed to the ping functionality, insufficient input sanitization allows an attacker to inject shell metacharacters and arbitrary commands. The injected commands are then executed within the context of the underlying operating system shell, inheriting the privileges of the ActiveGate service process.

This vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring authentication or user interaction. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could execute arbitrary code, install malware, exfiltrate sensitive monitoring data, pivot to other systems in the network, or disrupt critical monitoring infrastructure.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is insufficient input validation and sanitization of user-supplied IP address values before they are passed to the operating system's command execution functions. The ping extension fails to properly escape or validate special characters in the IP address parameter, allowing shell metacharacters such as semicolons, pipes, backticks, and command substitution syntax to be interpreted by the underlying shell.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based, allowing remote exploitation. An attacker can craft a malicious IP address containing OS command injection payloads. When the ping extension processes this input, the embedded commands are executed on the target system. Common injection techniques include appending commands using shell operators like ; command, | command, $(command), or backtick substitution.

The exploitation does not require any authentication or special privileges, making it accessible to any attacker with network access to the vulnerable ActiveGate instance. Technical details and proof-of-concept information are available in the GitHub PoC Repository.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-61304

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual process spawning from the ActiveGate service, particularly shell processes (bash, sh, cmd.exe, powershell.exe)
• Network connections initiated from ActiveGate to unexpected external destinations
• Anomalous command-line arguments in ping-related processes containing shell metacharacters or suspicious command strings
• Unexpected file modifications or new files in ActiveGate installation directories

Detection Strategies

• Monitor ActiveGate service logs for malformed or suspicious IP address inputs containing special characters
• Implement network intrusion detection rules to identify command injection patterns in HTTP requests to ActiveGate endpoints
• Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions to detect anomalous child process creation from the ActiveGate service
• Review system logs for unexpected command executions coinciding with ping extension activity

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging for the ActiveGate ping extension to capture all input parameters
• Configure SIEM alerting for command injection indicators such as shell metacharacters in application logs
• Implement process monitoring to detect unexpected shell spawning from monitoring services
• Establish baseline behavior for ActiveGate processes and alert on deviations

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-61304

Immediate Actions Required

• Upgrade Dynatrace ActiveGate ping extension to a patched version beyond 1.016
• If immediate patching is not possible, disable or remove the ping extension until a fix can be applied
• Restrict network access to ActiveGate instances using firewall rules and network segmentation
• Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to block command injection patterns targeting ActiveGate endpoints
• Monitor affected systems for signs of compromise while awaiting patch deployment

Patch Information

Organizations should consult Dynatrace's official security channels for the latest patched version of the ActiveGate ping extension. Ensure that versions beyond 1.016 are deployed to remediate this vulnerability. Additional technical details can be found in the GitHub PoC Repository.

Workarounds

• Disable the ping extension functionality if it is not critical to operations
• Implement strict input validation at the network perimeter to filter IP address parameters containing shell metacharacters
• Deploy network segmentation to limit exposure of ActiveGate instances to trusted networks only
• Use application-layer firewalls to inspect and block suspicious requests targeting the ping extension

# Example: Restrict network access to ActiveGate (Linux iptables)
# Allow only trusted management subnet to access ActiveGate
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 9999 -s 10.0.0.0/24 -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 9999 -j DROP