Root escalation via overbroad service-path matching
Published Sep 29, 2025 · Updated Sep 29, 2025
Local privilege escalation in VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools allows local users to gain root access in an SDMP-managed VM. The get_version service-discovery logic uses overbroad regular expressions that match binaries in user-writable paths and runs their version commands with elevated privileges. Access to a non-administrative account in a VM with VMware Tools installed and Aria Operations SDMP enabled is required; code then runs as root in that VM.
Summary
What happened
Local privilege escalation in VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools allows local users to gain root access in an SDMP-managed VM. The get_version service-discovery logic uses overbroad regular expressions that match binaries in user-writable paths and runs their version commands with elevated privileges. Access to a non-administrative account in a VM with VMware Tools installed and Aria Operations SDMP enabled is required; code then runs as root in that VM.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-41244
- Published
- Sep 29, 2025
- Updated
- Sep 29, 2025
- Vendor
- VMware
- Product
- VMware Tools
- Classifications
- CWE-267, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- May 19, 2025Exploitation reportedNVISO incident-response observation
- Sep 29, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 29, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
- Oct 30, 2025Exploitation reportedCISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog entry
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.
Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=12.5.x <12.5.4
- Affected versionversion=13.x.x.x <13.0.5.0
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- NVISO CVE-2025-41244 proof of conceptfunctional · demonstrated
- CVE-2025-41244.patchproof of concept · validated
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Reported exploitation
- CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog entryknown exploited catalog
- NVISO incident-response observationexploit chain
- Broadcom suspected in-the-wild exploitationreported exploitation
Technologies
Your stack
See the directory against your own environment.
Your stack
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