CVEs / CVE-2020-3950
CVE-2020-3950: VMware Multiple Products Privilege Escalation Vulnerability
- Known exploited in the CISA KEV catalog since 3 Nov 2021
- high 7.8 CVSS 3.1 (NVD)
- EPSS 7.25% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 94% of CVEs (30 Oct 2026)
- Last changed at its sources
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Summary
VMware Fusion, Remote Console (VMRC) for Mac, and Horizon Client for Mac contain a privilege escalation vulnerability due to improper use of setuid binaries that allows attackers to escalate privileges to root.
Description
VMware Fusion (11.x before 11.5.2), VMware Remote Console for Mac (11.x and prior before 11.0.1) and Horizon Client for Mac (5.x and prior before 5.4.0) contain a privilege escalation vulnerability due to improper use of setuid binaries. Successful exploitation of this issue may allow attackers with normal user privileges to escalate their privileges to root on the system where Fusion, VMRC or Horizon Client is installed.
Affected and fixed versions
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| n/a VMware Fusion, VMware Remote Console for Mac and Horizon Client for Mac | VMware Fusion (11.x before 11.5.2), VMware Remote Console for Mac (11.x and prior before 11.0.1) and Horizon Client for Mac (5.x and prior before 5.4.0) | — |
Exploitation
| In CISA KEV since | 3 Nov 2021 |
|---|---|
| Due date for US federal agencies | 3 May 2022 |
| Used in ransomware campaigns | Unknown |
| Required action | Apply updates per vendor instructions. |
Severity
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 highCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HScored by NVD |
|---|---|
| Weakness | CWE-269 |
References
- CVE-2020-3950 on NVD
- CVE-2020-3950 in the CISA KEV catalog
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/156843/VMware-Fusion-11.5.2-Privilege-Escalation.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/157079/VMware-Fusion-USB-Arbitrator-Setuid-Privilege-Escalation.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2020-0005.html Vendor Advisory
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2020-3950 US Government Resource
Sources
Exploitation status from the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. EPSS scores from FIRST. Descriptions, severity and references from the National Vulnerability Database. Open-source package versions from OSV (CC-BY 4.0). Text is shown as each source states it; Stackurity does not edit it. Check the vendor's advisory before acting.
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.