CVE-2021-23874KEV · OVERDUECWE-269

McAfee Total Protection (MTP) privilege escalation vulnerability

High · published February 10, 2021

Patch now

Confirmed exploited, and the score agrees

CVSS calls it high at 8.2. It is confirmed in active exploitation. It sits in the 63.3th percentile for exploit probability.

1802
days past CISA
deadline
CVSS v3.1
8.2
EPSS
1%
Percentile
63.3
In the wild
Confirmed
What it is

🚨 A local user can exploit a flaw in McAfee Total Protection before version 16.0.30 to run any code they want! Think of it like a sneaky hotel guest who figures out how to bypass the front desk and access any room — with this vulnerability, they can waltz into any system process without a keycard! An attacker could gain elevated privileges, potentially wreaking havoc by executing malicious code, stealing sensitive data, or even disabling security features. The consequences could be absolutely devastating, allowing unauthorized access to your system's most critical components!

Put simply

Think of it like a sneaky hotel guest who figures out how to bypass the front desk and access any room — with this vulnerability, they can waltz into any system process without a keycard! This vulnerability allows local users to bypass McAfee's self-defense mechanism and execute arbitrary processes with higher privileges than intended. It's a lapse in the application's security checks that leaves systems exposed.

What to do

An attacker could gain elevated privileges, potentially wreaking havoc by executing malicious code, stealing sensitive data, or even disabling security features. The consequences could be absolutely devastating, allowing unauthorized access to your system's most critical components! Update McAfee Total Protection to version 16.0.30 or later immediately. Additionally, review user permissions and restrict access to prevent unauthorized users from exploiting this flaw. Regular security audits can also help identify any lingering issues. You've got this! Follow these steps, and you'll be well on your way to securing your environment! 🛡️

The record
Technical detail
CVSS v3.1
8.2 · HIGH
Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
CVSS v4.0
Not supplied
EPSS
0.01026 · 63.3th percentile
Weakness
CWE-269 · Improper Privilege Management
Published
2021-02-10T10:25Z
KEV added
2021-11-03 · due 2021-11-17
EPSS history
Timeline
  • 03 NOV 00:00Z
    Added to CISA KEV — remediate by Nov 17
    kev
  • 10 FEB 10:25Z
    McAfee Total Protection (MTP) privilege escalation vulnerability
    cvelistv5