CVE-2017-13674
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 · uneditedSymantec ProxyClient 3.4 for Windows is susceptible to a privilege escalation vulnerability. A malicious local Windows user can, under certain circumstances, exploit this vulnerability to escalate their privileges on the system and execute arbitrary code with LocalSystem privileges.
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 · moderate confidenceSymantec ProxyClient 3.4 for Windows contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability that allows a malicious local user to gain LocalSystem privileges and execute arbitrary code. The vulnerability requires the attacker to have local access to the system and meets 'certain circumstances' as described by the vendor.
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= 3.4CVSS 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
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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 Symantec ProxyClient is installedCheck for the presence of Symantec ProxyClient in the system. Look in Program Files or Program Files (x86) for a 'Symantec' or 'ProxyClient' folder, or query the Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for an entry containing 'ProxyClient' or 'Symantec ProxyClient'.Affected if The software is present on the system.
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Determine the installed versionLocate the version information for the installed ProxyClient. Check the registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Symantec\ProxyClient (or similar path) for a 'Version' or 'ProductVersion' value, or right-click the main executable in the installation folder and view Properties > Details.Affected if The installed version is exactly 3.4.
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Confirm the ProxyClient service is runningOpen Services (services.msc) and look for a service named 'Symantec ProxyClient' or similar, or run 'sc query' from an elevated command prompt to enumerate services containing 'ProxyClient' in the name.Affected if The ProxyClient service is currently running on the system.
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Identify the service account contextRun 'sc qc <servicename>' to query the service configuration, then 'sc enumdepend <servicename>' to check dependencies. The vulnerability allows escalation to LocalSystem, indicating the service runs with elevated privileges.Affected if The service runs under LocalSystem or a high-privilege account.
A system is affected if Symantec ProxyClient version 3.4 is installed and the related service is running on the system.
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 dataApply the vendor-supplied patch or update to Symantec ProxyClient to a version beyond 3.4. If no update is available, consider removing the software if unnecessary, as it runs with high privileges and presents a significant attack surface.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-13674 — 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-2017-13674 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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