Privilege escalation via hardcoded credential-encryption keys
Published Aug 22, 2025 · Updated Aug 26, 2025
Credential exposure in PDQ SmartDeploy before 3.0.2046 allows local users to recover privileged credentials from deployment data. The Encryption class in SDCommon.dll protects registry values and answer-file secrets with universal hardcoded AES keys, while the SmartDeploy registry key permits low-privileged reads. Local low-privileged access to a managed Windows device or authenticated read access to deployment files is sufficient to decrypt local-administrator or domain credentials and use them for privilege escalation.
Summary
What happened
Credential exposure in PDQ SmartDeploy before 3.0.2046 allows local users to recover privileged credentials from deployment data. The Encryption class in SDCommon.dll protects registry values and answer-file secrets with universal hardcoded AES keys, while the SmartDeploy registry key permits low-privileged reads. Local low-privileged access to a managed Windows device or authenticated read access to deployment files is sufficient to decrypt local-administrator or domain credentials and use them for privilege escalation.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-52094
- Published
- Aug 22, 2025
- Updated
- Aug 26, 2025
- Vendor
- Unknown vendor
- Product
- Unknown product
- Classifications
- CWE-732, T1552.002
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 22, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 26, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.
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
- NotSoSmartDeploy credential decryption proof of conceptproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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