CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2018-19999 — Solarwinds Serv-U Ftp Server security vulnerability

High CVSS 7.8

The local management interface in SolarWinds Serv-U FTP Server 15.1.6.25 has incorrect access controls that permit local users to bypass authentication in the application and execute code in the context of the Windows SYSTEM account, leading to privilege escalation. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must have local access the the host running Serv-U, and a Serv-U administrator have an active management console session.

Severity
High
CVSS
7.8 (3.0)
Published
2019-06-07
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
windows/system
Weaknesses
CWE-287

Affected products

  • solarwinds / serv-u_ftp_server / 15.1.6.25

Matched remediation archetype

Authentication bypass and missing authentication

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Check exposure

  • Map every affected endpoint and protocol path, including alternate ports, legacy routes, recovery flows, service accounts, and machine-to-machine access.
  • Confirm which deployments enable the affected authentication mode and whether the interface is reachable from untrusted networks.
  • Review session, token, credential, and proxy trust configuration without attempting account takeover.

Remediate safely

  • Apply the supported fix and centralize fail-closed authentication before protected request handling.
  • Remove default or embedded credentials, rotate affected secrets and sessions, and bind authentication decisions to the intended audience and channel.
  • Add negative tests for alternate routes, malformed or absent credentials, recovery flows, and proxy-derived identity.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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