Loading vulnerability…
A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in Pulse Secure Desktop Client versions prior to 9.1R9. The vulnerability allows an attacker to exploit the client registry to escalate privileges on the affected Windows system. The issue is related to the Standalone Host Checker Client and Windows PDC, and remediation requires both client and server-side updates.
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 proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit for Pulse Secure VPN clients (Pulse Connect Secure) on Windows, targeting CVE-2020-8241 and CVE-2020-8239. The main file, 'rogue-pulse-svr.py', is a Python script that acts as a rogue Pulse Secure VPN gateway/server. When a victim connects to this rogue server (typically via a man-in-the-middle attack or by being lured to connect), the script can: - Steal user credentials by simulating the login process. - Execute arbitrary binaries on the client by abusing the PCS feature that allows launching executables after authentication, using UNC paths. - Gain SYSTEM-level privileges by abusing host compliance checks, which are executed as SYSTEM, to write arbitrary values to the Windows registry (e.g., setting a debugger for notepad.exe). - Intercept and display network traffic from the VPN client, even when 'always-on' is enabled. The PoC includes hardcoded payloads and demonstrates the attack chain, but is not fully weaponized. The README provides detailed background, attack scenarios, and references. The exploit requires the attacker to control a network position (e.g., rogue Wi-Fi, compromised router) and for the victim to accept a certificate warning. The repository is structured with a single main exploit script, a README with technical and contextual information, and a license file.
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.
No public activity tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.
No public activity observed for this vulnerability.
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.