CVE-2010-5196
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 · uneditedUntrusted search path vulnerability in KeePass Password Safe before 2.13 allows local users to gain privileges via a Trojan horse DwmApi.dll file in the current working directory, as demonstrated by a directory that contains a .kdbx file. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.
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 confidenceKeePass Password Safe before version 2.13 contains an untrusted search path vulnerability where the application loads the DwmApi.dll library from the current working directory rather than a secure system path. Local attackers can place a malicious DwmApi.dll in directories containing .kdbx database files; when users open KeePass from or in those directories, the trojan horse DLL executes with the privileges of the user running KeePass, achieving local privilege escalation.
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<= 2.10= 1.6CVSS 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:M/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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Identify installed KeePass versionOpen KeePass and go to Help > About, or right-click the KeePass.exe file and select Properties > Details to view the version numberAffected if The version is 1.6 or any version 2.10 or lower (2.0 through 2.10)
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Check for DwmApi.dll in directories where you open KeePassSearch for any file named DwmApi.dll in folders where you store .kdbx database files or from which you typically launch KeePassAffected if A DwmApi.dll file exists in any directory you use to open .kdbx files or from which you launch KeePass, especially in shared or network locations
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Verify DLL loading behaviorLaunch KeePass from a directory containing a DwmApi.dll file and monitor which DLL is loaded using process monitoring tools like Process Explorer or by checking KeePass behaviorAffected if KeePass loads a DwmApi.dll from the current working directory instead of the Windows system folder (typically C:\Windows\System32)
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Assess directory access controlsReview whether directories containing your .kdbx files or directories from which you open KeePass are writable by other local users or shared with othersAffected if Other local users or untrusted parties can write files to directories you use to store or open .kdbx databases
You are affected if you use KeePass version 1.6 or any version 2.10 or earlier, and you open .kdbx files from or launch KeePass in directories where an attacker could place a malicious DwmApi.dll file.
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 dataUpgrade KeePass to version 2.13 or later, which includes a corrected DLL search path. Avoid opening .kdbx files from untrusted or shared directories as a temporary workaround.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing0.5 h
- Review / QA0.5 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2010-5196 — 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-2010-5196 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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