Skip to main content

Parallels Desktop CVE-2020-17391

MEDIUM
Exposed Dangerous Method or Function (CWE-749)
2020-08-25 zdi-disclosures@trendmicro.com
RCE Parallels Desktop Parallels
6.5
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
CWE-749
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Dangerous method exposure prevention
Impact

CVSS score of 6.5 (MEDIUM). Attack characteristics: local attack vector, low complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction not required.
Exploit ScenarioDerived

Successful exploitation could compromise the medium-severity affected system.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
No patch listed yet 0.5% exploitation probability (EPSS)

Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.

Alert me

AnalysisAI

This vulnerability allows local attackers to disclose information on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 15.1.3-47255. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Apply vendor patches when available. Implement network segmentation and monitoring as interim mitigations.

Affects your stack

Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Sign in to check
Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-749. This vulnerability allows local attackers to disclose information on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 15.1.3-47255. 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 handler for HOST_IOCTL_INIT_HYPERVISOR in the prl_hypervisor kext. The issue results from the exposure of dangerous method or function to the unprivileged user. An attacker can leverage this in conjunction with other vulnerabilities to execute arbitrary code in the context of the kernel. Was ZDI-CAN-10518. Affected products include: Parallels Parallels Desktop.

Know when Parallels Desktop gets its next vulnerability

  • Watch products and get an email when something new is published
  • Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
Continue with Google Continue with GitHub

No credit card · 7-day full trial

Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 6.5 MEDIUM
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

DescriptionNVD

This vulnerability allows local attackers to disclose information on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 15.1.3-47255. 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 handler for HOST_IOCTL_INIT_HYPERVISOR in the prl_hypervisor kext. The issue results from the exposure of dangerous method or function to the unprivileged user. An attacker can leverage this in conjunction with other vulnerabilities to execute arbitrary code in the context of the kernel. Was ZDI-CAN-10518.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.5%
Top 59% exploitable
Data Quality
2 sources
Confidence: Low
NVD CVE.org EPSS

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.5%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Defer
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium

Priority Score

33
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +32
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Remote Code Execution CRITICAL

Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.

Affected Products (CPE)NVD

cpe:2.3:a:parallels:parallels_desktop:*:*:*:*:*:macos:*:*

More in Parallels Desktop

View all
CVE-2025-31359 HIGH POC
8.8 Jun 03

Directory traversal vulnerability in Parallels Desktop for Mac version 20.2.2 (build 55879) affecting the PVMP package u
CVE-2024-54189 HIGH POC
7.8 Jun 03

Privilege escalation vulnerability in Parallels Desktop for Mac version 20.1.1 (build 55740) where the snapshot function
CVE-2024-36486 HIGH POC
7.8 Jun 03

Privilege escalation vulnerability in Parallels Desktop for Mac 20.1.1 that allows a local attacker with user-level priv
CVE-2024-52561 HIGH POC
7.8 Jun 03

Privilege escalation vulnerability in Parallels Desktop for Mac version 20.1.1 (build 55740) affecting the Snapshot dele
CVE-2024-6240 CRITICAL
10.0 Jun 21

Improper privilege management vulnerability in Parallels Desktop Software, which affects versions earlier than 19.3.0. R
CVE-2022-34890 HIGH
8.8 Jul 18

This vulnerability allows local attackers to disclose sensitive information on affected installations of Parallels Deskt
CVE-2021-34864 HIGH
8.8 Oct 25

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 16.1.3 (
CVE-2021-34857 HIGH
8.8 Oct 25

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 16.1.3 (
CVE-2021-34856 HIGH
8.8 Oct 25

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 16.1.3 (
CVE-2021-31426 HIGH
8.8 Apr 29

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 16.1.2-4
CVE-2021-31425 HIGH
8.8 Apr 29

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 16.1.2-4
CVE-2021-31424 HIGH
8.8 Apr 29

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 15.1.5-4

Same weakness CWE-749 – Exposed Dangerous Method or Function

View all
CVE-2018-19322 HIGH POC
7.8
CVE-2025-26651 MEDIUM
6.5
CVE-2025-59403 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2026-30957 CRITICAL POC
9.9
CVE-2026-30921 CRITICAL POC
9.9
CVE-2022-4136 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2026-77926 HIGH POC
8.7
CVE-2016-9469 HIGH POC
8.2

Same technique RCE

View all
CVE-2021-44228 CRITICAL POC
10.0
CVE-2017-7269 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2022-47966 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2012-4681 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2023-3519 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2015-5119 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2016-4117 CRITICAL POC
9.8
CVE-2015-3113 CRITICAL POC
9.8

References

Advisories & patches
ADVISORY https://kb.parallels.com/en/125013 REF https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1009/

Search Externally

GitHub PoC Exploit-DB PacketStorm Snyk Rapid7 Nuclei Templates Trickest PoC
Back

This site uses cookies essential for authentication and security. No tracking or analytics cookies are used. Privacy Policy