cbcvebase.
CVE-2015-2342
published 2015-10-12

CVE-2015-2342: The JMX RMI service in VMware vCenter Server 5.0 before u3e, 5.1 before u3b, 5.5 before u3, and 6.0 before u1 does not restrict registration of MBeans, which…

PriorityP277critical10CVSS 2.0
AVNACLAuNCCICAC
EXPLOIT
EPSS
89.05%
99.8th percentile
The JMX RMI service in VMware vCenter Server 5.0 before u3e, 5.1 before u3b, 5.5 before u3, and 6.0 before u1 does not restrict registration of MBeans, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via the RMI protocol.

Affected

7 ranges
VendorProductVersion rangeFixed in
vmwarevcenter_server
vmwarevcenter_server
vmwarevcenter_server
vmwarevcenter_server
vmwarevmware_esxi
vmwarevmware_vcenter_server
vmwarevsphere

Detection & IOCsextracted from sources · hover to see the quote

port1617
port9875
pathmetasploit/JMXPayloadMBean.class
pathmetasploit/JMXPayload.class
commandgetMBeansFromURL
otherjavax.management.loading.MLet
  • Detect unauthenticated JMX RMI connections on port 1617 (default Metasploit exploit target port) or port 9875 (vCenter JMX RMI service port); unexpected inbound connections to these ports from external hosts are highly suspicious.
  • Alert on JMX RMI service exposure on port 9875; vCSA blocks this by default, so any external access to this port on Windows vCenter installations is a strong indicator of exploitation attempt.
  • Detect MLet MBean creation and getMBeansFromURL invocation over RMI; these are the core exploit primitives used to load a remote payload JAR from an attacker-controlled HTTP server.
  • Monitor for HTTP requests serving a .jar file and an 'mlet' endpoint from the same host during an active RMI session; this pattern matches the exploit's payload delivery mechanism.
  • Look for RMI traffic initiating a handshake followed by createMBean for 'javax.management.loading.MLet' and subsequent invocation of 'run' on a JMXPayload object; this sequence is the full exploit chain.
  • Use the Metasploit auxiliary scanner module for Java JMX to identify exposed and vulnerable JMX endpoints in the environment.
  • ·The fix for CVE-2015-2342 in vCenter Server 5.0 U3e, 5.1 U3b, and 5.5 U3/U3a/U3b running on Windows was incomplete; an additional patch must be applied separately.
  • ·JMX interfaces with authentication disabled (com.sun.management.jmxremote.authenticate=false) are directly vulnerable; authentication-enabled interfaces are also exploitable if MLet or ClassLoader MBeans are permitted.
  • ·vCSA 5.1, 5.5, and 6.0 block remote access to port 9875 by default, reducing exposure; Windows-based vCenter installations do not have this protection and are at higher risk.
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