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 (14611)
In onActivityResult of AvatarPickerActivity.java, there is a possible way to access images belonging to other users due to a missing permission check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In Mfc_Transceive of phNxpExtns_MifareStd.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In getTrampolineIntent of SettingsActivity.java, there is a possible launch of arbitrary activity due to an Intent mismatch in the code. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in Delta Electronics InfraSuite Device Master 00.00.02a. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
act is a project which allows for local running of github actions. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
A privilege escalation vulnerability was identified in Nessus versions 8.10.1 through 8.15.8 and 10.0.0 through 10.4.1. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
Use of default credentials vulnerability in CONPROSYS HMI System (CHS) Ver.3.4.5 and earlier allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to alter user credentials information. 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.
Rapid7 Velociraptor allows users to be created with different privileges on the server. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 22.003.20282 (and earlier), 22.003.20281 (and earlier) and 20.005.30418 (and earlier) are affected by a Creation of Temporary File in Directory with Incorrect. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 22.003.20282 (and earlier), 22.003.20281 (and earlier) and 20.005.30418 (and earlier) are affected by a Creation of Temporary File in Directory with Incorrect. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Vulnerability in the Oracle Communications Convergence product of Oracle Communications Applications (component: Admin Configuration). Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
Netdata is an open source option for real-time infrastructure monitoring and troubleshooting. 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.
Product security bypass vulnerability in ACC prior to version 8.3.4 allows a locally logged-in attacker with administrator privileges to bypass the execution controls provided by ACC using the. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.4), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A 2-Step Verification problem in Axigen 10.3.3.52 allows an attacker to access a mailbox by bypassing 2-Step Verification when they try to add an account to any third-party webmail service (or add an. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Insecure folder permissions in the Windows installation path of Shibboleth Service Provider (SP) before 3.4.1 allow an unprivileged local attacker to escalate privileges to SYSTEM via DLL planting in. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Improper Privilege Management in GitHub repository usememos/memos prior to 0.9.1. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
authentik is an open-source Identity provider focused on flexibility and versatility. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
h3c firewall <= 3.10 ESS6703 has a privilege bypass vulnerability. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A link following vulnerability in the Damage Cleanup Engine component of Trend Micro Apex One and Trend Micro Apex One as a Service could allow a local attacker to escalate privileges by creating a. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
IBM AIX 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, and VIOS 3.1 could allow a non-privileged local user to exploit a vulnerability in the rm_rlcache_file command to obtain root privileges. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.4), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
A vulnerability has been identified in Micro Focus ZENworks 2020 Update 3a and prior versions. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
When saving or opening an email attachment on macOS, Thunderbird did not set attribute com.apple.quarantine on the received file. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Documents in deeply-nested cross-origin browsing contexts could have obtained permissions granted to the top-level origin, bypassing the existing prompt and wrongfully inheriting the top-level. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A Time-of-Check Time-of-Use bug existed in the Maintenance (Updater) Service that could be abused to grant Users write access to an arbitrary directory. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
If Firefox was installed to a world-writable directory, a local privilege escalation could occur when Firefox searched the current directory for system libraries. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0). Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Proofpoint Enterprise Protection (PPS/PoD) contains a vulnerability which allows the pps user to escalate to root privileges due to unnecessary permissions. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the oslo.privsep functionality of OpenStack git master 05194e7618 and prior. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the sudo functionality of OpenStack Kolla git master 05194e7618. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
wfshbr64.sys and wfshbr32.sys specially crafted IOCTL allows arbitrary user to perform local privilege escalation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Some smartphones have configuration issues. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), 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.
Apiman 1.5.7 through 2.2.3.Final has insufficient checks for read permissions within the Apiman Manager REST API. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In getView of AddAppNetworksFragment.java, there is a possible way to mislead the user about network add requests due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In phNxpNciHal_core_initialized of phNxpNciHal.cc, 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. This Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability could allow attackers to write data beyond allocated buffer boundaries leading to code execution or crashes.
In trusty_ffa_mem_reclaim of shared-mem-smcall.c, there is a possible privilege escalation due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In mmu_map_for_fw of gs_ldfw_load.c, there is a possible mitigation bypass due to Permissive Memory Allocation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ConvertUtf8ToUcs2 of radio_hal_utils.cpp, 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 fillSetupDataCallInfo_V1_6 of ril_service_1_6.cpp, 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 fillSetupDataCallInfo_V1_6 of ril_service_1_6.cpp, 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 encode of wlandata.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to improper input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ServiceInterface::HandleRequest of serviceinterface.cpp, there is a possible use after free. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In CdmaBroadcastSmsConfigsRequestData::encode of cdmasmsdata.cpp, there is a possible stack clash leading to memory corruption. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In BroadcastSmsConfigsRequestData::encode of smsdata.cpp, 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 ProtocolEmbmsBuilder::BuildSetSession of protocolembmsbuilder.cpp, 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 EmbmsSessionData::encode of embmsdata.cpp, 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 StringsRequestData::encode of requestdata.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds read due to improper input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In CallDialReqData::encode of callreqdata.cpp, 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 ProtocolCallBuilder::BuildSendUssd of protocolcallbuilder.cpp, 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 ProtocolSimBuilder::BuildSimUpdatePb3gEntry of protocolsimbuilder.cpp, 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 SimUpdatePbEntry::encode of simdata.cpp, 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 ProtocolMiscBuilder::BuildSetSignalReportCriteria of protocolmiscbuilder.cpp, 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 CallDialReqData::encodeCallNumber of callreqdata.cpp, 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 ProtocolMiscBuilder::BuildSetLinkCapaReportCriteria of protocolmiscbuilder.cpp, 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 FacilityLock::Parse of simdata.cpp, 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 HexString2Value of util.cpp, 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.
vRealize Operations (vROps) contains a privilege escalation vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Improper Privilege Management vulnerability could allow attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access.
In TBD of TBD, 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.
In Pixel firmware, there is a possible exposure of sensitive memory due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In sec_media_protect of media.c, there is a possible EoP due to an integer overflow. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ppmpu_set of ppmpu.c, there is a possible EoP due to an integer overflow. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In sendChunk of WirelessCharger.cpp, 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 updateStart of WirelessCharger.cpp, 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 sysmmu_map of sysmmu.c, there is a possible EoP due to a precondition check failure. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ppmp_validate_wsm of drm_fw.c, there is a possible EoP due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In valid_out_of_special_sec_dram_addr of drm_access_control.c, there is a possible EoP due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In valid_out_of_special_sec_dram_addr of drm_access_control.c, there is a possible EoP due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In page_number of shared_mem.c, there is a possible code execution in secure world due to improper input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ppmp_unprotect_mfcfw_buf of drm_fw.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to improper input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ppmp_unprotect_mfcfw_buf of drm_fw.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 the Pixel camera driver, there is a possible use after free due to a logic error in the code. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In ufdt_do_one_fixup of ufdt_overlay.c, 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 RadioImpl::setCdmaBroadcastConfig of ril_service_legacy.cpp, there is a possible stack clash leading to memory corruption. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In RadioImpl::setGsmBroadcastConfig of ril_service_legacy.cpp, there is a possible stack clash leading to memory corruption. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In OemSimAuthRequest::encode of wlandata.cpp, 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 externalOnRequest of rilapplication.cpp, 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 verity_target of dm-verity-target.c, there is a possible way to modify read-only files due to a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Missing Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources or perform actions without proper authorization checks.
In extract_metadata of dm-android-verity.c, there is a possible way to corrupt kernel memory due to a use after free. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In thermal_cooling_device_stats_update of thermal_sysfs.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to improper input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In (TBD) of (TBD), there is a possible way to corrupt kernel memory due to a use after free. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In pppol2tp_create of l2tp_ppp.c, there is a possible use after free due to a race condition. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.4).
In l2cap_chan_put of l2cap_core, there is a possible use after free due to improper locking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In _ufdt_output_strtab_to_fdt of ufdt_convert.c, 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. This Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability could allow attackers to write data beyond allocated buffer boundaries leading to code execution or crashes.
In TBD of ufdt_convert, there is a possible out of bounds read due to memory corruption. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability could allow attackers to read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries.
In TBD of aud_hal_tunnel.c, there is a possible memory corruption due to a use after free. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In registerReceivers of DeviceCapabilityListener.java, there is a possible way to change preferred TTY mode due to a permissions bypass. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Incorrect Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to bypass authorization checks to access restricted resources.
In MessageQueueBase of MessageQueueBase.h, there is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability could allow attackers to read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries.
In launchConfigNewNetworkFragment of NetworkProviderSettings.java, there is a possible way for the guest user to add a new WiFi network due to a missing permission check. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Missing Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources or perform actions without proper authorization checks.
In removeEventHubDevice of InputDevice.cpp, there is a possible OOB read due to a use after free. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In onCreate of LogAccessDialogActivity.java, there is a possible way to bypass a permission check due to a tapjacking/overlay attack. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In Multiple Locations, there is a possibility to launch arbitrary protected activities due to a confused deputy. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In authToken2AidlVec of KeyMintUtils.cpp, 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. This Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability could allow attackers to write data beyond allocated buffer boundaries leading to code execution or crashes.
Quick Facts
- Typical Severity
- HIGH
- Category
- auth
- Total CVEs
- 14611