Privilege Escalation
Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.
How It Works
Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted. The attack exploits the gap between what the system thinks a user can do and what they actually can do through manipulation or exploitation.
Vertical escalation is the classic form—a regular user obtaining administrator rights. This happens through kernel exploits that bypass OS-level security, misconfigurations in role-based access control (RBAC) that fail to enforce boundaries, or direct manipulation of authorization tokens and session data. Horizontal escalation involves accessing resources belonging to users at the same privilege level, typically through insecure direct object references (IDOR) where changing an ID in a request grants access to another user's data.
Context-dependent escalation exploits workflow logic by skipping authorization checkpoints. An attacker might access administrative URLs directly without going through proper authentication flows, manipulate parameters to bypass permission checks, or exploit REST API endpoints that don't validate method permissions—like a read-only GET permission that can be leveraged for write operations through protocol upgrades or alternative endpoints.
Impact
- Full system compromise through kernel-level exploits granting root or SYSTEM privileges
- Administrative control over applications, allowing configuration changes, user management, and deployment of malicious code
- Lateral movement across cloud infrastructure, containers, or network segments using escalated service account permissions
- Data exfiltration by accessing databases, file systems, or API endpoints restricted to higher privilege levels
- Persistence establishment through creation of backdoor accounts or modification of system configurations
Real-World Examples
Kubernetes clusters have been compromised through kubelet API misconfigurations where read-only GET permissions on worker nodes could be escalated to remote code execution. Attackers upgraded HTTP connections to WebSockets to access the /exec endpoint, gaining shell access to all pods on the node. This affected over 69 Helm charts including widely-deployed monitoring tools like Prometheus, Grafana, and Datadog agents.
Windows Print Spooler vulnerabilities (PrintNightmare class) allowed authenticated users to execute arbitrary code with SYSTEM privileges by exploiting improper privilege checks in the print service. Attackers loaded malicious DLLs through carefully crafted print jobs, escalating from low-privilege user accounts to full domain administrator access.
Cloud metadata services have been exploited where SSRF vulnerabilities combined with over-permissioned IAM roles allowed attackers to retrieve temporary credentials with elevated permissions, pivoting from compromised web applications to broader cloud infrastructure access.
Mitigation
- Enforce deny-by-default access control where permissions must be explicitly granted rather than implicitly allowed
- Implement consistent authorization checks at every layer—API gateway, application logic, and data access—never relying on client-side or single-point validation
- Apply principle of least privilege with time-limited, scope-restricted permissions and just-in-time access for administrative functions
- Audit permission inheritance and role assignments regularly to identify overly permissive configurations or privilege creep
- Separate execution contexts using containers, sandboxes, or capability-based security to limit blast radius
- Deploy runtime monitoring for unusual privilege usage patterns and anomalous access to restricted resources
Recent CVEs (2425)
Inappropriate implementation in Navigation in Google Chrome prior to 132.0.6834.83 allowed a remote attacker to perform privilege escalation via a crafted HTML page. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Insufficient data validation in Extensions in Google Chrome prior to 132.0.6834.83 allowed a remote attacker who convinced a user to engage in specific UI gestures to perform privilege escalation via. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
The Post Grid and Gutenberg Blocks plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation in versions 2.2.85 to 2.3.3. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Dell Display Manager, versions prior to 2.3.2.18, contain a Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7). No vendor patch available.
In Yubico pam-u2f before 1.3.1, local privilege escalation can sometimes occur. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A privilege escalation vulnerability was discovered that could allow a valid, authenticated LXCA user to escalate their permissions for a connected XCC instance when using LXCA as a Single Sign On. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. No vendor patch available.
Microsoft AutoUpdate (MAU) Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
Windows Web Threat Defense User Service Information Disclosure Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
Windows Installer Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
An uninitialized resource in Ivanti EPM before the 2024 January-2025 Security Update and 2022 SU6 January-2025 Security Update allows a local authenticated attacker to escalate their privileges. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A flaw was found in rsync. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.6). No vendor patch available.
A improper neutralization of special elements used in an sql command ('sql injection') in Fortinet FortiAnalyzer version 7.4.0 through 7.4.2, FortiManager version 7.4.0 through 7.4.2 allows attacker. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. No vendor patch available.
A out-of-bounds write in Fortinet FortiManager version 7.4.0 through 7.4.2, FortiAnalyzer version 7.4.0 through 7.4.2 allows attacker to escalation of privilege via specially crafted http requests. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A improper privilege management in Fortinet FortiManager version 7.4.0 through 7.4.3, 7.2.0 through 7.2.5, 7.0.0 through 7.0.12, 6.4.0 through 6.4.14, FortiAnalyzer version 7.4.0 through 7.4.2, 7.2.0. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An authenticated attacker can use this vulnerability to perform a privilege escalation to gain root access. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An improper privilege management vulnerability in the web management interface of the Zyxel WBE530 firmware versions through 7.00(ACLE.3) and WBE660S firmware versions through 6.70(ACGG.2) could. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
SAP NetWeaver Application Server for ABAP and ABAP Platform allows an authenticated attacker to obtain illegitimate access to the system by exploiting improper authentication checks, resulting in. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability in the BitdefenderVirusScanner binary as used in Bitdefender Virus Scanner for MacOS may allow .dynamic library injection (DYLD injection) without being blocked by. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.4), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In PRIMX ZED Enterprise up to 2024.3, technical files stored in local folders with common user access can be manipulated to render the host computer unavailable or to execute programs with an. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
An issue in the component src/api/identity.rs of Vaultwarden prior to v1.32.5 allows attackers to impersonate users, including Administrators, via a crafted authorization request. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Infoblox BloxOne v2.4 was discovered to contain a business logic flaw due to thick client vulnerabilities. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Strawberry GraphQL is a library for creating GraphQL APIs. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.7), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
Incorrect Privilege Assignment vulnerability in Drupal Registration role allows Privilege Escalation.0.0 before 2.0.1. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability in the Gen7 SonicOS Cloud platform NSv, allows a remote authenticated local low-privileged attacker to elevate privileges to `root` and potentially lead to code execution. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The AdForest theme for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation via account takeover in all versions up to, and including, 5.1.6. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Privilege escalation vulnerability in the Account module Impact: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may affect service confidentiality. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.6), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Vulnerability of improper permission control in the window management module Impact: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may affect service confidentiality. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Cross-process screen stack vulnerability in the UIExtension module Impact: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may affect service confidentiality. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Permission control vulnerability in the Connectivity module Impact: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may cause features to perform abnormally. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.2), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability exits in driver SmSerl64.sys in Motorola SM56 Modem WDM Driver v6.12.23.0, which allows low-privileged users to mapping physical memory via specially crafted IOCTL requests . Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability exits in driver snxppamd.sys in SUNIX Parallel Driver x64 - 10.1.0.0, which allows low-privileged users to read and write arbitary i/o port via specially crafted IOCTL requests . Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability exits in driver snxpsamd.sys in SUNIX Serial Driver x64 - 10.1.0.0, which allows low-privileged users to read and write arbitary i/o port via specially crafted IOCTL requests . Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In versions 1.0.67 and lower of the Splunk App for SOAR, the Splunk documentation for that app recommended adding the `admin_all_objects` capability to the `splunk_app_soar` role. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. No vendor patch available.
The WebChannel API, which is used to transport various information across processes, did not check the sending principal but rather accepted the principal being sent. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Incorrect Privilege Assignment vulnerability in Amento Tech Pvt ltd WPGuppy allows Privilege Escalation.1.0. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Incorrect Privilege Assignment vulnerability in AllAccessible Team Accessibility by AllAccessible allows Privilege Escalation.3.4. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Croma Music plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized modification of data that can lead to privilege escalation due to a missing capability check on the 'ironMusic_ajax' function in all. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The SMS Alert Order Notifications - WooCommerce plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized modification of data that can lead to privilege escalation due to a missing capability check on the. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Missing Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources or perform actions without proper authorization checks.
The School Management System - SakolaWP plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation in all versions up to, and including, 1.0.8. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The PayU CommercePro Plugin plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation in all versions up to, and including, 3.8.3. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Themes Coder - Create Android & iOS Apps For Your Woocommerce Site plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation via account takeover in all versions up to, and including, 1.3.4. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Dell Update Package Framework, versions prior to 22.01.02, contain(s) a Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.2), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The edit profile function of Grocy through 4.3.0 allows stored XSS and resultant privilege escalation by uploading a crafted HTML or SVG file, a different issue than CVE-2024-8370. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
An Escalation of Privilege security vulnerability was found in SecureAge Security Suite software 7.0.x before 7.0.38, 7.1.x before 7.1.11, 8.0.x before 8.0.18, and 8.1.x before 8.1.18 that allows. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Uncontrolled resource consumption when a driver, an application or a SMMU client tries to access the global registers through SMMU. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5). No vendor patch available.
In Modem, there is a possible out of bounds write due to an incorrect bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In V6 DA, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.6), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In V6 DA, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.6), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In V6 DA, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.6), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In power, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In m4u, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
GoCD is a continuous deliver server. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity.
An issue in CodeAstro Complaint Management System v.1.0 allows a remote attacker to escalate privileges via the delete_e.php component. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Moxa’s cellular routers, secure routers, and network security appliances are affected by a high-severity vulnerability, CVE-2024-9138. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In startListeningForDeviceStateChanges, there is a possible Permission Bypass due to a confused deputy. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
there is a possible biometric bypass due to an unusual root cause. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In Exynos_parsing_user_data_registered_itu_t_t35 of VendorVideoAPI.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to an incorrect bounds check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In prepare_response of lwis_periodic_io.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to an integer overflow. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In wbrc_bt_dev_write of wb_regon_coordinator.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a buffer overflow. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
there is a possible biometric bypass due to an unusual root cause. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In prepare_response_locked of lwis_transaction.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In construct_transaction_from_cmd of lwis_ioctl.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a heap buffer overflow. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
there is a possible to add apps to bypass VPN due to Undeclared Permission . Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In isPackageDeviceAdmin of PackageManagerService.java, there is a possible edge case which could prevent the uninstallation of CloudDpc due to a logic error in the code. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In skia_alloc_func of SkDeflate.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to an integer overflow. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In onPrimaryClipChanged of ClipboardListener.java, there is a possible way to partially bypass lock screen. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In multiple locations, there is a possible way to avoid unbinding of a service from the system due to a logic error in the code. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In resizeToAtLeast of SkRegion.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to an integer overflow. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability could allow attackers to write data beyond allocated buffer boundaries leading to code execution or crashes.
In DevmemValidateFlags of devicemem_server.c , there is a possible out of bounds write due to memory corruption. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Local privilege escalation due to DLL hijacking vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Local privilege escalation due to excessive permissions assigned to Tray Monitor service. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.4), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Local privilege escalation due to DLL hijacking vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A flaw was found in openshift/builder. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A critical authentication bypass vulnerability exists in Red Hat OpenShift AI/OpenShift Data Science that allows attackers to escalate privileges and access multiple AI models within the same namespace using credentials from any single authenticated model. The vulnerability stems from ServiceAccount tokens being exposed in the UI, which can be exploited to gain unauthorized access to other models and APIs in the namespace with elevated view privileges. With an EPSS score of 0.10% and no current KEV listing, the vulnerability has relatively low real-world exploitation activity despite its high CVSS score of 8.8.
This vulnerability in the Linux kernel's SMB client implementation fails to properly set user identity attributes (uid, gid, cruid) during multiuser automount operations, causing child mounts to inherit credentials from the parent mount instead of dynamically assigning correct values. A local attacker with unprivileged user access can exploit this to gain unauthorized access to files or perform operations with elevated privileges on SMB shares, potentially leading to privilege escalation. The vulnerability affects multiple kernel versions from 5.15.124 through 6.8-rc4, patches are available from the kernel maintainers, and the EPSS score of 0.03% indicates low real-world exploitation probability despite the moderate CVSS rating.
Relax-and-Recover (aka ReaR) through 2.7 creates a world-readable initrd when using GRUB_RESCUE=y. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Clerk helps developers build user management. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.0), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
Nginx-UI is a web interface to manage Nginx configurations. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. Public exploit code available and EPSS exploitation probability 16.0%.
Nginx-ui is online statistics for Server Indicators Monitor CPU usage, memory usage, load average, and disk usage in real-time. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.7), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. Public exploit code available.
Authentik is an open-source Identity Provider. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. This Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability could allow attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages viewed by other users.
Azure IPAM (IP Address Management) is a lightweight solution developed on top of the Azure platform designed to help Azure customers manage their IP Address space easily and effectively. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
A symbolic link manipulation vulnerability in Trellix Anti-Malware Engine prior to the January 2024 release allows an authenticated local user to potentially gain an escalation of privileges. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Craft is a content management system. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
A use-after-free flaw was found in the netfilter subsystem of the Linux kernel. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Use After Free vulnerability could allow attackers to access freed memory to execute arbitrary code or crash the application.
Privilege escalation vulnerability in Ego Studio SuperClean Android app versions 1.1.5 and 1.1.9, where attackers can gain elevated privileges by manipulating the update_info field in the _default_.xml file. A public proof-of-concept exploit is available on GitHub, though the EPSS score indicates low real-world exploitation probability at 0.04%.
Quick Facts
- Typical Severity
- HIGH
- Category
- auth
- Total CVEs
- 2425