Privilege escalation in Microsoft Windows Group Policy

1) Link following

EUVDB-ID: #VU67252

Risk: Low

CVSSv3.1: 7.7 [CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C]

CVE-ID: CVE-2022-37955

CWE-ID: CWE-59 - Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

Exploit availability: No

Description

The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges on the system.

The vulnerability exists due to a symlink following issue within the Group Policy Preference Client module. A local user can create a specially crafted symbolic link to a critical file on the system and overwrite it with SYSTEM privileges.

Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may result in privilege escalation.

Mitigation

Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Windows Server: 2003 - 2022 20H2

Windows: 7 - XP

External links

http://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2022-37955
http://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-22-1285/

Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.