A critical Ivanti Connect Secure VPN vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-0282, was disclosed. Threat actors are actively exploiting it in the wild, primarily targeting organizations relying on Ivanti’s Zero Trust Access (ZTA) solutions. Review this Cybersecurity Threat Advisory to see how to protect your network environment against this vulnerability.
What is the threat?
CVE-2025-0282 is a zero-day vulnerability affecting Ivanti Connect Secure VPN appliances, allowing unauthenticated attackers to exploit a Remote Code Execution (RCE) flaw and gain full control of affected systems. The issue stems from improper validation of user input within the VPN’s web interface, specifically in how the VPN gateway handles HTTP requests sent to its management portal. Attackers can craft malicious payloads within these requests to bypass authentication mechanisms and execute arbitrary code on the underlying system.
The attack typically begins with the adversary scanning for publicly accessible Ivanti Connect Secure VPN endpoints. Once they identify a vulnerable system, they send a specially crafted HTTP request to the management interface, exploiting the input validation flaw. This allows the attacker to inject malicious commands that execute with the same privileges as the VPN process. In many cases, these privileges are sufficient to gain full control of the system.
Once attackers gain access, they can carry out various malicious activities. They may deploy malware to establish persistence, exfiltrate sensitive data such as credentials and configuration files, or use the compromised VPN to penetrate deeper into the organization’s network. The stealthy nature of this vulnerability makes it particularly effective, often evading traditional security measures focused on user authentication or endpoint protection.
Why is it noteworthy?
As this vulnerability is actively exploited by sophisticated threat actors, it is imperative for organizations using Ivanti’s secure access solutions to promptly address this issue. Additionally, since this vulnerability affects a crucial component of many organizations’ zero-trust architecture, it has the potential to cause a ripple effect across interconnected systems.
What is the exposure or risk?
Organizations using Ivanti Connect Secure VPN face a significant risk of compromise, especially if attackers expose their systems to the internet. Successful exploitation could lead to complete network compromise, data exfiltration, and disruption of critical services. The vulnerability’s ease of exploitation make it a high-priority threat for private and public sectors.
What are the recommendations?
Barracuda strongly recommends organizations to take these steps to protect your network environment against this threat:
- Update your system immediately with the patch Ivanti has released addressing CVE-2025-0282.
- Limit external access to the VPN management interface and enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all remote connections.
- Engage in incident response if exploitation is suspected to contain and remediate breaches.
Resource
For more in-depth information about the threat, please visit the following link:
If you have any questions about this Cybersecurity Threat Advisory, please contact Barracuda Managed XDR’s Security Operations Center.
This post originally appeared on Smarter MSP.