Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
McAfee Endpoint Security for Windows had an installer access-control flaw that could let someone who already has local administrator rights remove the anti-malware engine. The main business risk is loss of endpoint protection after an attacker or insider gains privileged access.
Executive priority
Prioritize remediation during endpoint security maintenance, especially where local admin rights are common. This is not evidenced as actively exploited, but it can weaken defenses after privileged compromise.
Technical view
CVE-2021-23880 is a CWE-269 improper access control issue in McAfee ENS for Windows before the 10.7.0 February 2021 Update. CVSS is 6.7. The attack is local, low complexity, requires high privileges, and can affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability by removing anti-malware protection.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on Windows endpoints running McAfee Endpoint Security 10.7.x that have not received the February 2021 Update. Systems where local administrator rights are broadly assigned have higher practical risk.
Exploitation context
The provided sources require an authenticated local administrator. There is no KEV listing and no supplied source showing active exploitation. This is more relevant as post-compromise defense weakening than as an initial access vulnerability.
Researcher notes
The source bundle names McAfee ENS for Windows 10.7.x before the February 2021 Update. It does not provide exploit details, broader affected versions, or independent exploitation evidence. Avoid expanding scope beyond the listed product and version line.
Mitigation direction
- Update McAfee ENS for Windows to the 10.7.0 February 2021 Update or later.
- Review McAfee security bulletin SB10345 for vendor remediation guidance.
- Restrict and audit local administrator rights on Windows endpoints.
- Investigate endpoints where the ENS anti-malware engine was unexpectedly uninstalled.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Windows endpoints running McAfee ENS and record version and update level.
- Identify systems still on ENS 10.7.x before the February 2021 Update.
- Review endpoint management logs for ENS uninstall events by local administrators.
- Confirm endpoint protection policy detects or prevents unauthorized product removal.
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
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-269: Authorization and privilege behavior lookup
Authorization weaknesses can support privilege escalation and valid-account review, depending on exploit path. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-23880 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 6.7 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H0.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6.7MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://kc.mcafee.com/corporate/index?page=content&id=SB10345CVE 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.
Improper Privilege Management
Improper Privilege Management represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.