high
7.2
CWE
295
Advisory Published
CVE Published
Updated
Advisory Published

CVE-2024-5921: GlobalProtect App: Insufficient Certificate Validation Leads to Privilege Escalation (Severity: MEDIUM)

First published: Tue Nov 26 2024(Updated: )

An insufficient certification validation issue in the Palo Alto Networks GlobalProtect app enables attackers to connect the GlobalProtect app to arbitrary servers. This can enable a local non-administrative operating system user or an attacker on the same subnet to install malicious root certificates on the endpoint and subsequently install malicious software signed by the malicious root certificates on that endpoint. GlobalProtect App for Android is under evaluation. Please subscribe to our RSS feed https://security.paloaltonetworks.com/rss.xml to be alerted to new updates to this and other advisories.

Credit: psirt@paloaltonetworks.com

Affected SoftwareAffected VersionHow to fix
All of
Palo Alto Networks GlobalProtect<6.3.2=6.3.0<6.2.6=6.2.0=6.1.0
6.3.2
6.2.6
Microsoft Windows*
All of
Palo Alto Networks GlobalProtect<6.3.2=6.3.0<6.2.6-c857=6.2.0=6.1.0
6.3.2
6.2.6-c857
Apple macOS*
All of
Palo Alto Networks GlobalProtect<6.2.1-HF2=6.2.0=6.1.0
6.2.1-HF2
Linux Linux*
All of
Palo Alto Networks GlobalProtect<6.1.6=6.1.0
Google Android*
All of
Palo Alto Networks GlobalProtect<6.1.7=6.1.0
6.1.7
Apple iOS*

Remedy

You can mitigate this issue for all platforms (Windows (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode/enable-fips-cc-mode-using-the-windows-registry), macOS (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode/enable-fips-cc-mode-using-the-macos-property-list), Linux (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode/enable-fips-cc-mode-on-linux-endpoints-redhat), iOS (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode-using-workspaceone-on-ios-devices), Android (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode/enable-and-verify-fips-cc-mode-using-microsoft-intune-on-android-endpoints)) by using the GlobalProtect app 6.0 in FIPS-CC mode or GlobalProtect app 5.1 in FIPS-CC mode. For details, refer to the first "FIPS-CC Certification Validation" table in our documentation (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/resolve-fips-cc-mode-issues). Note: this is separate from any FIPS-CC configurations on any GlobalProtect portals or gateways. This workaround is specific to FIPS-CC mode on the GlobalProtect app. GlobalProtect portals or gateways do not need to use FIPS-CC mode as part of this workaround.

Remedy

This issue is fixed in GlobalProtect app 6.2.6 on Windows, GlobalProtect app 6.2.6-c857 on macOS, GlobalProtect app 6.3.2 on Windows and macOS, and all later GlobalProtect app versions. Additional fixes are under development and will be made available for the remaining platforms (Linux, iOS, and Android). The fix for this vulnerability requires three steps: 1. Ensure that all of your GlobalProtect portals use TLS certificate chains that meet the criteria specified in the "FIPS-CC Certification Validation" table in our documentation (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/resolve-fips-cc-mode-issues). 2. Ensure that the TLS certificate chains used by the GlobalProtect portals are added to the root certificate store in your operating system. 3. Install a fixed version of GlobalProtect using one of the deployment options below. This setting enforces strict X.509v3 verification checks on the certificate provided by the GlobalProtect portal. Note: Prisma Access customers using portals with a *.gpcloudservice.com domain name already have valid TLS certificate chains. The root certificate for these portals is from GoDaddy, which is trusted by default in Windows, macOS, RHEL, Ubuntu, iOS, and Android. Therefore, Prisma Access customers using a GlobalProtect portal with a *.gpcloudservice.com domain name should only need to perform step 3 above. Important: If your GlobalProtect portals do not use valid X.509V3 TLS certificate chains, this will result in TLS verification failures. To generate a GlobalProtect portal certificate that can be used with a fixed version of GlobalProtect app, refer to the first "FIPS-CC Certification Validation" table in our documentation (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/certifications/resolve-fips-cc-mode-issues). Warning: Performance Concern: Some customers reported problems connecting to Portals and Gateways when this solution was implemented in certain situations. This is due to certificate providers that rate limit requests for Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) and certificate revocation list (CRL) checks. This happens when multiple users connect to GlobalProtect Portals from a single public IP (such as NAT) around the same time, such as when hundreds or thousands of end users connect around the start of a workday from a single office. Solution for new and existing GlobalProtect app installations on Windows Customers can use their endpoint mobile device management (MDM) tools to apply the following changes. 1. Install a fixed version of GlobalProtect app. 2. Update the following registry key with the specified recommended values (these values have the REG_SZ type): [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Palo Alto Networks\GlobalProtect\Settings] "cert-store"="machine" "cert-location"="ROOT" "full-chain-cert-verify"="yes" 3. To apply this registry change, restart Windows. Alternate solution for new GlobalProtect app installations on Windows Install the GlobalProtect app with the pre-deployment key FULLCHAINCERTVERIFY set to Yes: > msiexec.exe /i GlobalProtect64.msi FULLCHAINCERTVERIFY="yes" Note: This command will add the registry values listed in the previous section (no additional MSI options are needed). Solution for new and existing GlobalProtect app installations on macOS 1. Install a fixed version of the GlobalProtect app. 2. Use Xcode to edit the com.paloaltonetworks.GlobalProtect.settings.plist file (https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/globalprotect-apps/deploy-app-settings-transparently/deploy-app-settings-to-mac-endpoints/deploy-app-settings-in-the-mac-plist) in /Library/Preferences. 3. Add a "Settings" section if it does not exist within the GlobalProtect section. 4. Within the "Settings" section, add the full-chain-cert-verify key and set the string value to yes. <key>GlobalProtect</key> <dict>     (removed for brevity)     <key>Settings</key>     <dict>         <key>full-chain-cert-verify</key>         <string>yes</string>     </dict> </dict> 5. Restart macOS.

Never miss a vulnerability like this again

Sign up to SecAlerts for real-time vulnerability data matched to your software, aggregated from hundreds of sources.

Read MoreStart Free Trial

Reference Links

Company

Resources

Contact

SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
132 Wickham Terrace
Fortitude Valley,
QLD 4006, Australia
info@secalerts.co
By using SecAlerts services, you agree to our services end-user license agreement. This website is safeguarded by reCAPTCHA and governed by the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. All names, logos, and brands of products are owned by their respective owners, and any usage of these names, logos, and brands for identification purposes only does not imply endorsement. If you possess any content that requires removal, please get in touch with us.
© 2025 SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
ABN: 70 645 966 203, ACN: 645 966 203