CVE-2026-22769: Hardcoded Credential in Dell RecoverPoint for VMs (Critical)

What Is Dell RecoverPoint for Virtual Machines?

RecoverPoint for VMs is a disaster recovery and data replication solution designed for virtualized environments.

It’s typically used to:

• Replicate virtual machine data between sites
• Provide near real-time data protection
• Enable point-in-time recovery
• Support disaster recovery and business continuity strategies
• Minimize downtime during outages or ransomware incidents

In most environments, this solution plays a critical role in keeping production workloads safe and recoverable. When something this central to your recovery strategy has a vulnerability, it deserves serious attention.

The Vulnerability: Hardcoded Credentials

What’s the issue?

Versions prior to 6.0.3.1 HF1 contain a hardcoded credential.

A hardcoded credential means:

• A username and/or password is embedded directly in the application code.
• It cannot be changed by administrators.
• If discovered, it can be reused by anyone who knows it.

In this case, an attacker who knows the credential could:

• Authenticate remotely
• Access the underlying operating system
• Achieve root-level persistence
• Potentially compromise the entire appliance

Severity and Risk

Dell (as the CNA) has assigned:

• CVSS 3.1 Score: 10.0 (CRITICAL)
• Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

This translates to:

• AV:N (Network) – Exploitable over the network
• AC:L (Low Complexity) – No advanced conditions required
• PR:N (No Privileges Required) – No login required beforehand
• UI:N (No User Interaction) – No user action needed
• C:H / I:H / A:H – High impact to Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability
• Scope Changed (S:C) – Impact extends beyond the vulnerable component

In practical terms: If the credential becomes known, exploitation could be straightforward and devastating.

As of publication, the NVD has not yet provided its own scoring assessment, but the CNA score alone makes it clear this is a high-priority issue.

Why Hardcoded Credentials Are So Dangerous

Hardcoded credentials are considered one of the most serious security flaws because:

• They bypass standard authentication controls.
• They often grant elevated privileges.
• They’re difficult to rotate or revoke.
• Once disclosed publicly, they become widely weaponized.

In high-value infrastructure products like disaster recovery appliances, this is especially concerning. An attacker compromising a recovery system can:

• Sabotage backups
• Implant persistence mechanisms
• Prepare for ransomware detonation
• Disable recovery paths before launching a broader attack

That makes this vulnerability strategically attractive.

Is This Normally Isolated?

In well-designed environments, yes. RecoverPoint appliances are typically:

• Deployed in management or infrastructure VLANs
• Restricted via firewall rules
• Accessible only from specific administrative networks
• Not exposed directly to the public internet

If your environment follows strong network segmentation practices, the risk of opportunistic external exploitation is significantly reduced.

However:

• Internal threats remain possible.
• Compromised endpoints inside the network could pivot.
• Flat networks dramatically increase exposure.

Security posture matters here.

Could This Be an Insider Issue?

Hardcoded credentials don’t appear by accident. They usually result from:

• Development shortcuts
• Debugging backdoors left in production
• Embedded service accounts
• Poor secure development lifecycle controls

In some cases, flaws like this raise uncomfortable questions about internal code review processes. While there’s no evidence of malicious insider intent, it’s reasonable to say that such vulnerabilities often point to development-stage weaknesses that should have been caught earlier.

Strong SDLC practices, code review, and automated scanning tools are specifically designed to prevent this class of issue.

What Should You Do?

If you’re running Dell RecoverPoint for VMs:

• Check your version immediately.
• If you’re running a version prior to 6.0.3.1 HF1:
  • Upgrade as recommended by Dell.
  • Apply available hotfixes or remediations.
• Verify:
  • Network exposure
  • Access control lists
  • Firewall rules
  • Administrative access paths
• Review logs for unusual authentication behavior.

This is not a “wait for maintenance window next quarter” type of issue.

Broader Lessons

CVE-2026-22769 reinforces a few important security principles:

• Infrastructure tools must be treated as high-value assets.
• Network segmentation is not optional.
• Hardcoded credentials should never reach production.
• Disaster recovery systems are part of your attack surface.

Ironically, the very system meant to protect your organization in a crisis can become a foothold for attackers if left unpatched.

Final Thoughts

A CVSS 10.0 rating is rare, and it signals urgency. If you rely on RecoverPoint for Virtual Machines for data protection, patching should be a top operational priority. Even if your deployment is well isolated, assume that threat actors will analyze and attempt to weaponize this vulnerability quickly.

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