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CVE-2026-59309 is an authentication-bypass vulnerability in the VMware Directory Service component of VMware vCenter Server. An unauthenticated attacker with network access to a vulnerable vCenter instance can bypass authentication and obtain unauthorized access to the virtualization management plane. Incident investigations identified activity consistent with exploitation beginning August 1, 2026, followed by administrative account creation. The precise authentication defect and vulnerable function are not specified.
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1 valid exploit after Mallory filtered fakes, detection scripts, and README-only repos.
VC-Strike is a 31-file, standard-library-only Python 3.8+ VMware vCenter penetration-testing suite with CLI and Tkinter GUI entry points (`vc-strike.py`, `vc-strike-gui.py`, and `python -m vcstrike`). It implements two network exploits: CVE-2026-59310, which abuses RFC5424 syslog fields and unsafe rsyslog dynamic path templates to write files as root and inject a root cron job; and CVE-2026-59309, which exploits missing SRP public-value validation in vmdird's Cyrus SASL SRP implementation by submitting A=N and forging authentication evidence. The former supports non-destructive write checks, arbitrary file writes, VAMI readback-based RCE, reverse shells, and a ProcessBuilder JSP webshell. The latter supports rootDSE/SRP discovery, post-bypass LDAP search/add/modify operations, user and administrator-group enumeration, SSO administrator creation, and password resets. Core implementation is in `syslog59310.py`, `srp59309.py`, `berldap.py`, `c2.py`, `recon.py`, and `postex.py`; it includes pure-Python AES-128-OFB and BER/LDAP implementations, offline self-tests, and unit tests. C2 functionality manages multiport listeners and reverse-shell sessions, interactive command execution, and base64-based file transfers. Documentation and `data.py` also provide cleanup instructions, IOCs, version checks, network restrictions, and rsyslog hardening guidance. No hard-coded victim infrastructure is present; target hosts and reverse-shell listener addresses are operator supplied.
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121 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.
A pre-authentication VMware vCenter vulnerability, described as an authentication-bypass flaw with a 9.8 severity rating.
Critical authentication-bypass vulnerability in VMware vCenter Directory Service, patched alongside CVE-2026-59310.
A VMware vCenter vulnerability mentioned only as contextual background; the content states it was actively exploited by threat actors.
A VMware vCenter vulnerability mentioned as recently actively exploited; no technical vulnerability details are provided.
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Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.
Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.