Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Some Dell EMC PowerConnect switches stored TACACS/RADIUS credentials in plain text in the system settings menu. A privileged authenticated user who can view that menu could read those credentials and reuse them for broader access.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for legacy network infrastructure because exposed authentication credentials can enable lateral movement. Urgency is greatest where many administrators have switch management access or credentials are reused across network devices.
Technical view
CVE-2019-3753 is a CWE-312 plain-text password storage flaw affecting listed Dell EMC PowerConnect models on firmware before 5.1.15.2. CVSS 3.0 is 7.2, with network attack vector and high privileges required, but high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact if credentials are abused.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in environments still running legacy Dell EMC PowerConnect 8024, 7000, M6348, M6220, M8024, or M8024-K firmware before 5.1.15.2. The attacker must already have authenticated access to the system settings menu.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited evidence of active exploitation. The practical risk is credential disclosure to an already privileged user or compromised administrator account, enabling follow-on attacks using TACACS/RADIUS credentials.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited to the CVE record and Dell reference in the bundle. The vulnerability requires high privileges, but the impact rating is high because disclosed TACACS/RADIUS credentials may affect other systems beyond the switch.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade affected PowerConnect firmware to 5.1.15.2 or later per Dell guidance.
- Restrict access to the system settings menu to trusted administrators only.
- Rotate TACACS/RADIUS credentials after remediation if exposure is possible.
- Review vendor guidance before making changes on unsupported legacy hardware.
Validation and detection
- Inventory affected PowerConnect models and record current firmware versions.
- Confirm no listed switch runs firmware earlier than 5.1.15.2.
- Review administrator accounts with access to system settings menus.
- Check authentication logs for unusual TACACS/RADIUS activity after possible exposure.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
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CWE-312: Exact CWE lookup
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Open ATT&CK lookupCredential and access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references authentication or credential exposure, so valid-account and credential-access review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2019-3753 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.2 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.25.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
7.2HighVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.dell.com/support/article/sln318359/CVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.