CVE-2020-3947

Host code execution via vmnetdhcp use-after-free

Published Mar 16, 2020 · Updated Aug 4, 2024

Use-after-free in VMware Workstation 15.x and Fusion 11.x allows guest OS users to execute host code through vmnetdhcp. VMware identifies the freed-object access only in the vmnetdhcp service and has not published the responsible function, input field, or invalid object lifetime. A malicious or compromised guest must reach the host-side DHCP service; exploitation crosses the VM boundary or crashes that service.

CVSS severity9.3
Critical
EPSS probability0.61%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Use-after-free in VMware Workstation 15.x and Fusion 11.x allows guest OS users to execute host code through vmnetdhcp. VMware identifies the freed-object access only in the vmnetdhcp service and has not published the responsible function, input field, or invalid object lifetime. A malicious or compromised guest must reach the host-side DHCP service; exploitation crosses the VM boundary or crashes that service.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-3947
Published
Mar 16, 2020
Updated
Aug 4, 2024
Vendor
VMware
Product
VMware Workstation
Classifications
CWE-416, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 16, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 4, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=15.x before 15.5.2

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

VMware · VMware Workstationversion=15.x before 15.5.2
VMware · VMware Fusionversion=11.x before 11.5.2

Published CVSS scores

9.3VMwareCVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
7.2NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
8.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-416Use After Free
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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