Loading vulnerability…
CVE-2020-16875 is a critical remote code execution vulnerability in Microsoft Exchange Server 2016 and 2019. Microsoft Exchange improperly validates arguments supplied to the New-DlpPolicy cmdlet through the Exchange Control Panel Data Loss Prevention functionality. An authenticated attacker assigned the Data Loss Prevention role can craft a malicious DLP policy containing PowerShell commands, causing arbitrary code execution in the context of the SYSTEM account.
Mallory correlates every CVE against your assets, your vendors, and active adversary campaigns. Know which vulnerabilities matter for you, not just which ones are loud.
What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.
What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.
If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.
Patch, then assume compromise.
1 valid exploit after Mallory filtered fakes, detection scripts, and README-only repos.
This repository contains a single Metasploit module (modules/exploits/windows/http/exchange_ecp_dlp_policy.rb) that exploits remote code execution vulnerabilities (CVE-2020-16875, CVE-2020-17132) in Microsoft Exchange Server 2016 (up to CU19) and 2019 (up to CU8) on Windows. The exploit requires valid credentials for a user with the 'Data Loss Prevention' role and an active mailbox. It works by logging into OWA, retrieving a ViewState from the DLP policy creation page, and uploading a malicious DLP policy template containing embedded PowerShell code. This code is executed as SYSTEM, allowing the attacker to run arbitrary commands or open a reverse shell (default payload is Meterpreter). The module is weaponized, supporting customizable payloads and is part of the Metasploit framework. The main attack vector is network-based, targeting the Exchange server's HTTPS endpoints. The code is well-structured, with clear separation of authentication, exploitation, and payload delivery logic.
Products and vendors Mallory has correlated with this vulnerability. Open in Mallory to drill down to specific CPE configurations and version ranges.
Vendor-confirmed product mapping. Mallory continuously reconciles this list against your asset inventory.
5 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.
A past Exchange post-authentication RCE case mentioned only as an example of the potential to chain an Exchange administrative context into code execution.
A Microsoft Exchange Server remote code execution vulnerability in the Data Loss Prevention component exposed through ECP, allowing authenticated attackers with DLP privileges to execute arbitrary code as SYSTEM.
Specific vulnerability listed in the content with severity Critical.
Specific named vulnerability listed in the content; no product or technical description is provided beyond severity/date and tabular flags.
Query your assets running an affected version, and investigate the blast radius.
Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.
Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.
YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.
Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.
Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.