CVE-2025-13662 is a vulnerability identified in the patch management component of Ivanti Endpoint Manager, a widely used enterprise endpoint management solution. The root cause is improper verification of cryptographic signatures (classified under CWE-347), which means that the software fails to correctly validate the authenticity and integrity of patches or updates before applying them. This cryptographic verification flaw allows a remote attacker, without any prior authentication, to craft malicious patches or updates that appear legitimate to the system. When a user interacts with these malicious patches—such as approving or initiating an update—the attacker can execute arbitrary code on the target system. This could lead to full system compromise, including unauthorized access, data theft, or disruption of services. The vulnerability affects all versions prior to Ivanti Endpoint Manager 2024 SU4 SR1, which contains the necessary fixes. The CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 indicates a high severity, with attack vector local (AV:L) but no privileges required (PR:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), user interaction required (UI:R), and high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H). Although no active exploits have been reported in the wild, the potential for damage is significant given the critical role of patch management in enterprise security. The vulnerability was publicly disclosed on December 9, 2025, and Ivanti has reserved the CVE since November 25, 2025. Organizations relying on Ivanti Endpoint Manager should consider this a critical security issue requiring immediate attention.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-13662 can be severe. Ivanti Endpoint Manager is commonly used in enterprise environments to manage and deploy patches across large fleets of endpoints. Exploitation of this vulnerability could allow attackers to bypass patch authenticity checks and execute arbitrary code remotely, potentially leading to widespread compromise of corporate networks. This could result in data breaches, intellectual property theft, disruption of business operations, and loss of trust. Critical sectors such as finance, healthcare, manufacturing, and government agencies in Europe are particularly at risk due to their reliance on secure patch management and the sensitive nature of their data. The requirement for user interaction somewhat limits automated exploitation but does not eliminate risk, especially in environments where users have elevated privileges or where social engineering can be leveraged. The high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts mean that successful exploitation could lead to data exfiltration, system manipulation, and denial of service. The absence of known exploits in the wild provides a window for proactive defense, but also means attackers may develop exploits rapidly once the vulnerability is public.

To mitigate CVE-2025-13662, European organizations should immediately upgrade Ivanti Endpoint Manager to version 2024 SU4 SR1 or later, where the cryptographic signature verification flaw is fixed. Until upgrades are fully deployed, organizations should enforce strict patch source validation policies and restrict patch deployment privileges to trusted administrators only. User training should emphasize caution when interacting with patch prompts or update requests, especially those originating from unexpected sources. Implement network segmentation to limit the spread of potential compromises and monitor endpoint management logs for suspicious activities related to patch deployment. Employ application whitelisting and endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions to detect and block unauthorized code execution. Regularly audit and verify the integrity of patch files and update mechanisms. Additionally, consider deploying multi-factor authentication for administrative access to the endpoint management system to reduce the risk of unauthorized actions. Finally, maintain up-to-date backups and incident response plans tailored to endpoint compromise scenarios.