CVE-2013-4810
Code Injection in HP ProCurve Manager (PCM) 3
Executive Summary
CVE-2013-4810 is a critical severity vulnerability affecting appsec. It is classified as Code Injection. This vulnerability is actively being exploited in the wild.
Precogs AI Insight
"The underlying mechanism of this vulnerability involves within HP ProCurve Manager (PCM) 3., allowing the improper handling of untrusted input. Exploitation typically involves an attacker attempting to compromise the entire application stack, rendering traditional defenses ineffective. By intercepting insecure data flows from user input directly to rendering sinks, Precogs is designed to ensure strict authentication requirements are met."
What is this vulnerability?
CVE-2013-4810 is categorized as a critical Code Injection flaw with a CVSS base score of 9.8. Based on our vulnerability intelligence, this issue occurs when the application fails to securely handle untrusted data boundaries.
HP ProCurve Manager (PCM) 3.20 and 4.0, PCM+ 3.20 and 4.0, Identity Driven Manager (IDM) 4.0, and Application Lifecycle Management allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a marshalled object to (1) EJBInvokerServlet or (2) JMXInvokerServlet, aka ZDI-CAN-1760. NOTE: this is probably a duplicate of CVE-2007-1036, CVE-2010-0738, and/or CVE-2012-0874.
This architectural defect enables adversaries to bypass intended security controls, directly manipulating the application's execution state or data layer. Immediate strategic intervention is required.
Risk Assessment
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| CVSS Base Score | 9.8 (CRITICAL) |
| Vector String | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| Published | September 16, 2013 |
| Last Modified | April 21, 2026 |
| Related CWEs | CWE-94, CWE-94 |
Impact on Systems
✅ Data Exfiltration: Attackers can extract sensitive data from backend databases, configuration files, or internal services.
✅ Authentication Bypass: Exploiting this flaw may allow unauthorized access to protected resources and administrative interfaces.
✅ Lateral Movement: Once initial access is gained, attackers can pivot to internal systems and escalate privileges.
How to Fix and Mitigate CVE-2013-4810
- Apply Vendor Patches Immediately: This vulnerability is listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Apply updates per vendor instructions.
- Verify Patch Deployment: Confirm all instances are updated using Precogs continuous monitoring.
- Review Audit Logs: Investigate historical access logs for indicators of compromise related to this attack surface.
- Implement Defense-in-Depth: Deploy WAF rules, network segmentation, and endpoint detection to limit blast radius.
Defending with Precogs AI
Precogs AI Analysis Engine identifies this vulnerability class through semantic code analysis powered by Code Property Graph (CPG) technology, performing inter-procedural taint tracking to detect injection flaws, broken authentication, and insecure data flows across your entire codebase.
Use Precogs to continuously scan your codebase, binaries, APIs, and infrastructure for this vulnerability class and related attack patterns. Our AI-powered detection engine combines static analysis with threat intelligence to identify exploitable weaknesses before attackers do.
Vulnerability Code Signature
Attack Data Flow
| Stage | Detail |
|---|---|
| Source | Untrusted payload via API or file upload |
| Vector | Input passed to a dynamic code evaluation function |
| Sink | eval(), exec(), or similar unsafe execution sink |
| Impact | Remote Code Execution (RCE), full system compromise |
Vulnerable Code Pattern
# ❌ VULNERABLE: Dynamic code evaluation
def process_data(user_input):
# Taint sink: arbitrary code execution
result = eval(user_input)
return result
Secure Code Pattern
# ✅ SECURE: Safe parsing
import ast
def process_data(user_input):
# Sanitized parsing: only evaluates literal structures
result = ast.literal_eval(user_input)
return result
How Precogs Detects This
Precogs AI Analysis Engine identifies unsafe dynamic code evaluation paths by tracking untrusted data into sinks like eval() and exec().\n