Exploited vulnerability · CISA KEV
Yes. CVE-2023-20867, VMware Tools Authentication Bypass Vulnerability, is being exploited in the wild. CISA added it to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 23 Jun 2023, 10 days after it was published. It affects VMware Tools. If you run it, CISA's required action is: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
VMware Tools contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the vgauth module. A fully compromised ESXi host can force VMware Tools to fail to authenticate host-to-guest operations, impacting the confidentiality and integrity of the guest virtual machine. An attacker must have root access over ESXi to exploit this vulnerability.
| Vendor | VMware (26 exploited CVEs in KEV) |
| Product | Tools |
| Vulnerability | VMware Tools Authentication Bypass Vulnerability |
| Weakness | CWE-287 |
| Published | 13 Jun 2023 |
| Added to KEV | 23 Jun 2023 |
| Reported by (CNA) | vmware |
Yes. CISA added CVE-2023-20867 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 23 Jun 2023, which means there is reliable evidence of exploitation in the wild.
CISA does not list known ransomware use for it. That can change, and exploitation alone is reason to fix it first.
Apply updates per vendor instructions. Check VMware's advisory for the fixed versions, and if you can't patch quickly, restrict access to the affected Tools and watch it for signs of compromise.
Sources: CISA KEV (exploitation, ransomware use, required action, due date), the CVE record (publication date, CVSS, CNA), NVD and FIRST EPSS (live score). More: all KEV additions in June 2023 · VMware scorecard · act-now radar.
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