Detect Quest KACE SMA Improper Authentication Exploitation Detected in Google Chronicle
Detects exploitation attempts against CVE-2025-32975, an improper authentication vulnerability (CWE-287) in Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA). This KEV-listed vulnerability allows attackers to bypass authentication controls, potentially enabling unauthorized access to the SMA management interface and downstream managed endpoints. Successful exploitation could lead to full appliance compromise and lateral movement across managed systems.
MITRE ATT&CK
YARA-L Detection Query
rule quest_kace_sma_auth_bypass_cve_2025_32975 {
meta:
author = "Detection Engineering"
description = "Detects potential CVE-2025-32975 exploitation against Quest KACE SMA - improper authentication bypass"
severity = "CRITICAL"
priority = "HIGH"
reference = "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-32975"
events:
$e.metadata.event_type = "NETWORK_HTTP"
$e.network.application_protocol = "HTTP" or $e.network.application_protocol = "HTTPS"
$e.target.port = 80 or $e.target.port = 443 or $e.target.port = 8080 or $e.target.port = 8443
(
re.regex($e.network.http.request_url, `(?i)/admin`) or
re.regex($e.network.http.request_url, `(?i)/userui`) or
re.regex($e.network.http.request_url, `(?i)/api/users`) or
re.regex($e.network.http.request_url, `(?i)/service/ambari`)
)
$e.network.http.response_code = 200 or
$e.network.http.response_code = 302
$src_ip = $e.principal.ip
match:
$src_ip over 10m
outcome:
$event_count = count_distinct($e.metadata.id)
$distinct_urls = count_distinct($e.network.http.request_url)
$target_ips = array_distinct($e.target.ip)
condition:
#e > 5 and $distinct_urls > 2
}Chronicle YARA-L rule detecting repeated successful HTTP access to Quest KACE SMA administrative endpoints from a single source IP within a 10-minute window, indicating potential authentication bypass exploitation of CVE-2025-32975.
Data Sources
Required Tables
False Positives & Tuning
- Administrators performing maintenance tasks generating multiple authenticated requests to KACE admin interfaces
- Automated monitoring or CMDB sync tools polling multiple KACE API endpoints
- Browser caching and redirect behavior causing multiple hits to the same admin path
- Multi-tab administrator sessions accessing different KACE management sections simultaneously
Other platforms for CVE-2025-32975
Testing Methodology
Validate this detection against 3 adversary techniques from Atomic Red Team. Each test below lists the behaviour to exercise and the telemetry you should expect to see. Executable commands and cleanup steps are available with Pro.
- Test 1KACE SMA Unauthenticated Admin Endpoint Enumeration
Expected signal: Web server access logs showing GET requests to /admin, /userui, /api/users, /service/ambari without authentication cookies; network flow records showing HTTP connections to KACE SMA on port 443
- Test 2KACE SMA Authentication Bypass Simulation via Missing Auth Header
Expected signal: Web server logs showing requests to /admin/, /admin/index.php, /api/users with empty or missing authentication cookies; HTTP response codes indicating whether bypass was successful (200/302) or properly rejected (401/403)
- Test 3Post-Exploitation KACE Agent Script Deployment Simulation
Expected signal: KACE SMA audit log entry showing script creation by the test account; network logs showing authentication followed by POST request to /api/script; SIEM alert on new script creation event from an account that recently logged in from an unusual IP
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