CVE-2021-20108: Manage Engine Asset Explorer Agent 1.0.34 listens on port 9000 for incoming commands over HTTPS from Manage Engine Server. The HTTPS certificates are ...

Description

Manage Engine Asset Explorer Agent 1.0.34 listens on port 9000 for incoming commands over HTTPS from Manage Engine Server. The HTTPS certificates are not verified which allows any arbitrary user on the network to send commands over port 9000. While these commands may not be executed (due to authtoken validation), the Asset Explorer agent will reach out to the manage engine server for an HTTP request. During this process, AEAgent.cpp allocates 0x66 bytes using "malloc". This memory is never free-ed in the program, causing a memory leak. Additionally, the instruction sent to aeagent (ie: NEWSCAN, DELTASCAN, etc) is converted to a unicode string, but is never freed. These memory leaks allow a remote attacker to exploit a Denial of Service scenario through repetitively sending these commands to an agent and eventually crashing it the agent due to an out-of-memory condition.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1

7.5/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

EPSS Probability

2.96%

85.5th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

CWE-401

Affected Software

Vendor	Product	Versions
Zohocorp	Manageengine Assetexplorer	1.0.34

References

https://www.tenable.com/security/research/tra-2021-29Third Party Advisory
https://www.tenable.com/security/research/tra-2021-29Third Party Advisory

Timeline

Published: Jul 19, 2021
Last Modified: Jun 17, 2026
Status: Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-20108?

Manage Engine Asset Explorer Agent 1.0.34 listens on port 9000 for incoming commands over HTTPS from Manage Engine Server. The HTTPS certificates are not verified which allows any arbitrary user on the network to send commands over port 9000. While these commands may not be executed (due to authtoken validation), the Asset Explorer agent will reach out to the manage engine server for an HTTP request. During this process, AEAgent.cpp allocates 0x66 bytes using "malloc". This memory is never free-ed in the program, causing a memory leak. Additionally, the instruction sent to aeagent (ie: NEWSCAN, DELTASCAN, etc) is converted to a unicode string, but is never freed. These memory leaks allow a remote attacker to exploit a Denial of Service scenario through repetitively sending these commands to an agent and eventually crashing it the agent due to an out-of-memory condition.

How severe is CVE-2021-20108?

CVE-2021-20108 has a CVSS score of 7.5/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 2.96% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

How do I fix CVE-2021-20108?

Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.