CVE-2024-53912 is a critical vulnerability identified in Veritas Enterprise Vault versions before 15.2. The issue stems from unsafe deserialization of untrusted data received via a .NET Remoting TCP port, a mechanism used for remote communication in .NET applications. Deserialization vulnerabilities occur when an application deserializes data from untrusted sources without proper validation, allowing attackers to craft malicious payloads that execute arbitrary code on the target system. In this case, remote attackers can send specially crafted data to the vulnerable TCP port, triggering the deserialization process and gaining the ability to execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the Enterprise Vault server process. The vulnerability does not require any authentication or user interaction, making it highly exploitable remotely over the network. The CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 reflects the critical nature of this flaw, with attack vector network (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N). The impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability is high, as attackers can fully compromise the server, potentially leading to data theft, service disruption, or lateral movement within the network. Although no public exploits have been reported yet, the vulnerability is assigned CWE-502 (Deserialization of Untrusted Data), a well-known and frequently exploited weakness. Veritas Enterprise Vault is widely used in enterprise environments for email archiving, compliance, and data retention, making this vulnerability a significant threat to organizations relying on this product.

The impact of CVE-2024-53912 is severe for organizations using vulnerable versions of Veritas Enterprise Vault. Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code without authentication, potentially leading to full system compromise. This can result in unauthorized access to sensitive archived data, disruption of archiving services, and the ability to pivot to other internal systems. The confidentiality of archived emails and documents can be breached, integrity of stored data can be altered or destroyed, and availability of the archiving service can be disrupted, affecting compliance and legal requirements. Enterprises in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, and government are particularly at risk due to the sensitive nature of archived data. Additionally, attackers could use compromised servers as footholds for further attacks within corporate networks. The lack of known exploits currently provides a window for mitigation, but the critical severity and ease of exploitation necessitate immediate attention to prevent potential widespread abuse.

To mitigate CVE-2024-53912, organizations should prioritize upgrading Veritas Enterprise Vault to version 15.2 or later, where the vulnerability is addressed. If immediate patching is not feasible, network-level mitigations should be applied, such as restricting access to the .NET Remoting TCP port using firewalls or network segmentation to limit exposure to trusted hosts only. Employing intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) with signatures for suspicious deserialization attempts can help detect exploitation attempts. Additionally, monitoring logs for unusual activity on the TCP port and implementing strict access controls on the Enterprise Vault server can reduce risk. Organizations should also review and harden .NET Remoting configurations, disabling unnecessary remoting endpoints if possible. Regular backups and incident response plans should be updated to prepare for potential compromise. Coordination with Veritas support and staying informed on any released patches or advisories is essential for timely remediation.