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ESXi CVE-2020-3981

MEDIUM
Out-of-bounds Read (CWE-125)
2020-10-20 security@vmware.com
5.8
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Bounds checking, read limits
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Collection

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Impact

CVSS score of 5.8 (MEDIUM). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, high complexity, high privileges required, no user interaction not required.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A remote attacker could read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries by sending crafted requests to the affected application.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
Patch available 0.8% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAI

VMware ESXi (7.0 before ESXi_7.0.1-0.0.16850804, 6.7 before ESXi670-202008101-SG, 6.5 before ESXi650-202007101-SG), Workstation (15.x), Fusion (11.x before 11.5.6) contain an out-of-bounds read. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable.

RemediationAI

A vendor patch is available. Apply the latest security update as soon as possible. Validate array indices and buffer lengths. Use memory-safe languages. Enable AddressSanitizer during testing.

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.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as Out-of-bounds Read (CWE-125), which allows attackers to read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries. VMware ESXi (7.0 before ESXi_7.0.1-0.0.16850804, 6.7 before ESXi670-202008101-SG, 6.5 before ESXi650-202007101-SG), Workstation (15.x), Fusion (11.x before 11.5.6) contain an out-of-bounds read vulnerability due to a time-of-check time-of-use issue in ACPI device. A malicious actor with administrative access to a virtual machine may be able to exploit this issue to leak memory from the vmx process. Affected products include: Vmware Cloud Foundation, Vmware Workstation, Vmware Esxi, Vmware Fusion. Version information: before 11.5.6.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 5.8 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

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

DescriptionNVD

VMware ESXi (7.0 before ESXi_7.0.1-0.0.16850804, 6.7 before ESXi670-202008101-SG, 6.5 before ESXi650-202007101-SG), Workstation (15.x), Fusion (11.x before 11.5.6) contain an out-of-bounds read vulnerability due to a time-of-check time-of-use issue in ACPI device. A malicious actor with administrative access to a virtual machine may be able to exploit this issue to leak memory from the vmx process.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.8%
Top 48% exploitable
Data Quality
2 sources
Confidence: Low

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 0.8%
Patch available Yes
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
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium

Priority Score

30
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +29
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.

Affected Products (CPE)NVD

cpe:2.3:a:vmware:cloud_foundation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:vmware:cloud_foundation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:vmware:workstation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:7.0.0:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:7.0.0:1.20.16321839:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:vmware:fusion:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201701001:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201703001:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201703002:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201704001:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707101:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707102:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707103:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707201:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707202:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707203:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707204:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.5:650-201707205:*:*:*:*:*:*
+ 204 more

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