CVE-2005-2940
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedUnquoted Windows search path vulnerability in Microsoft Antispyware 1.0.509 (Beta 1) might allow local users to gain privileges via a malicious "program.exe" file in the C: folder, involving the programs (1) GIANTAntiSpywareMain.exe, (2) gcASNotice.exe, (3) gcasServ.exe, (4) gcasSWUpdater.exe, or (5) GIANTAntiSpywareUpdater.exe. NOTE: it is not clear whether this overlaps CVE-2005-2935.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThis is an unquoted Windows search path vulnerability in Microsoft Antispyware 1.0.509 (Beta 1). The affected service executables (GIANTAntiSpywareMain.exe, gcASNotice.exe, gcasServ.exe, gcasSWUpdater.exe, GIANTAntiSpywareUpdater.exe) are launched from paths containing spaces without quotes. Windows resolves the path by searching for executables at each space-delimited component, allowing a local attacker to place a malicious 'program.exe' in the C: drive to be executed with elevated privileges before the legitimate binary loads.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 1.0.509CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify Microsoft Antispyware 1.0.509 is installedCheck the installed programs list in Control Panel or query the registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{GUID} for DisplayVersionAffected if DisplayVersion equals 1.0.509 (Beta 1)
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Identify vulnerable service executablesSearch for GIANTAntiSpywareMain.exe, gcASNotice.exe, gcasServ.exe, gcasSWUpdater.exe, or GIANTAntiSpywareUpdater.exe in typical install locations such as C:\Program Files\Microsoft AntiSpyware\ or C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft AntiSpyware\Affected if Any of these executables exist on the system and the installation path contains spaces (e.g., Program Files)
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Check service configuration for unquoted pathsRun 'sc qc gcasServ' (and similar for other services) or query HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\gcasServ\ImagePath to view the executable pathAffected if The ImagePath value does not contain quotation marks around the path that includes spaces
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Verify service runs with elevated privilegesRun 'sc qc gcasServ' to check the SERVICE_START_NAME or query HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\gcasServ\TypeAffected if Service runs as LocalSystem (type 0x10) or another elevated account and the executable path is unquoted
You are affected if Microsoft Antispyware 1.0.509 is installed with any of the five vulnerable executables present in a path containing spaces, and the service configuration shows an unquoted executable path running with elevated privileges.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataReplace Microsoft Antispyware with a supported solution like Windows Defender (or Microsoft Defender Antivirus). If the legacy product must remain in use, modify service configurations to use quoted paths for all executable references, or remove the service entirely.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2005-2940 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2005-2940 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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