G DATA Total Security GDBackupSvc Service Link Following Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

September 29th, 2023
ZDI-23-1493 ZDI-CAN-20694

CVE ID

CVE-2023-42126

CVSS Score

7.8 AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected Vendors

G DATA

Affected Products

Total Security

Vulnerability Details

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of G Data Total Security. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability.

The specific flaw exists within the GDBackupSvc service. By creating a symbolic link, an attacker can abuse the service to create a file with a permissive DACL. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the context of SYSTEM.

Additional Details

Fixed in version 25.5.16.125


Disclosure Timeline

  • 2023-04-28 - Vulnerability reported to vendor
  • 2023-09-29 - Coordinated public release of advisory
  • 2023-12-07 - Advisory Updated

Credit

Filip Dragovic (@filip_dragovic)

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