CVE-2024-53588
Published: 23 January 2025
Summary
CVE-2024-53588 is a high-severity Uncontrolled Search Path Element (CWE-427) vulnerability. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique DLL Search Order Hijacking (T1038); ranked at the 13.2th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 CM-10 (Software Usage Restrictions) and CM-14 (Signed Components).
Threat & Defense at a Glance
Threat & Defense Details
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI
Directly remediates the DLL hijacking flaw in iTop VPN by identifying, reporting, and correcting the untrusted search path vulnerability.
Enforces software whitelisting or blacklisting to prevent execution of attacker-placed malicious DLLs in untrusted paths like ProgramData.
Requires digital signatures for software components such as DLLs, blocking loading of unsigned malicious files exploited in this hijacking.
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Direct DLL hijacking via untrusted search path (CWE-427) enables arbitrary code execution on application launch.
NVD Description
A DLL hijacking vulnerability in iTop VPN v16.0 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via placing a crafted DLL file into the path \ProgramData\iTop VPN\Downloader\vpn6.
Deeper analysisAI
CVE-2024-53588 is a DLL hijacking vulnerability in iTop VPN version 16.0. The issue allows attackers to execute arbitrary code by placing a crafted DLL file into the path \ProgramData\iTop VPN\Downloader\vpn6. It is classified under CWE-427 (Untrusted Search Path) and received a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (High), with the vector AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
A local attacker requires no privileges and can exploit the vulnerability with low attack complexity, though user interaction is needed, such as launching the iTop VPN application. Upon successful exploitation, the attacker achieves high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability through arbitrary code execution.
Details on exploitation and potential mitigations are available in the referenced GitHub repository at https://github.com/JonathanLauener/iTop-privesc, published on 2025-01-23.
Details
- CWE(s)