CVE-2026-2542Public exploit

Local privilege escalation via unquoted service path

Published Feb 16, 2026 · Updated Feb 16, 2026

Unquoted service path in Total Security Total VPN 0.5.29.0 for Windows allows local users to execute code with service privileges. The service registers C:\Program Files\Total VPN\win-service.exe without quotes, so Windows can resolve C:\Program.exe first. Exploitation requires low-privileged local access, permission to place that executable at the drive root, and a service restart; successful execution inherits the service account's privileges.

CVSS severity7.3
High
EPSS probability0.16%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Unquoted service path in Total Security Total VPN 0.5.29.0 for Windows allows local users to execute code with service privileges. The service registers C:\Program Files\Total VPN\win-service.exe without quotes, so Windows can resolve C:\Program.exe first. Exploitation requires low-privileged local access, permission to place that executable at the drive root, and a service restart; successful execution inherits the service account's privileges.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-2542
Published
Feb 16, 2026
Updated
Feb 16, 2026
Vendor
Total Security
Product
Total VPN
Classifications
CWE-426, CWE-428, T1574.009
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Feb 16, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Feb 16, 2026Record 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=0.5.29.0

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Total Security · Total VPNversion=0.5.29.0

Published CVSS scores

7.0VulDBCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
6.0VulDBAV:L/AC:H/Au:S/C:C/I:C/A:C
7.3VulDBCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

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.

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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 exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-426Untrusted Search Path
CWE-428Unquoted Search Path or Element
T1574.009Hijack Execution Flow: Path Interception by Unquoted Path

Public exploit references

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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