PopupApplication · Pharos

CVE-2017-2785

CRITICAL · 10.0 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-03-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
An exploitable buffer overflow exists in the psnotifyd application of the Pharos PopUp printer client version 9.0. A specially crafted packet can be sent to the victim's computer and can lead to a heap based buffer overflow resulting in remote code execution. This client is always listening, has root privileges, and requires no user interaction to exploit.

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 confidence

A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the psnotifyd application of the Pharos PopUp printer client version 9.0. An attacker can send a specially crafted packet to achieve remote code execution. The vulnerable client runs as root, listens continuously, and requires no user interaction to exploit.

MitigationImmediately restrict network access to the psnotifyd service or disable it if not essential until vendor patch is available; if the service must remain running, implement network segmentation and monitor for exploitation attempts.

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
PopupApplication
Affected:= 9.0

CVSS 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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify if Pharos PopUp is installed
    Search for Pharos Popup software on the system using package managers, installed programs list, or file system searches for 'Pharos' or 'Popup' directories.
    Affected if Pharos PopUp version 9.0 is found installed on the system
  2. Verify the installed version
    Check the installed Pharos PopUp version through system inventory tools, installed software list, or by querying the software directly if a version command is available.
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 9.0 (the affected version)
  3. Locate the psnotifyd application
    Search for the psnotifyd executable on the system, typically in Pharos installation directories or system service paths.
    Affected if The psnotifyd binary is present on the system
  4. Check if psnotifyd service is running
    Query running processes for psnotifyd or check system service status for the Pharos popup notification service.
    Affected if psnotifyd is currently running as a service
  5. Verify psnotifyd network listening status
    Check network connections or open ports to determine if psnotifyd is listening on any network interface (e.g., using netstat, ss, or similar tools).
    Affected if psnotifyd is listening on a network port and accepting connections
  6. Confirm psnotifyd runs as root
    Check the process ownership of running psnotifyd instances through process inspection tools.
    Affected if psnotifyd is running with root privileges

A system is affected if Pharos PopUp version 9.0 is installed with the psnotifyd service running and listening on a network port as root.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Immediately restrict network access to the psnotifyd service or disable it if not essential until vendor patch is available; if the service must remain running, implement network segmentation and monitor for exploitation attempts.

Fix this in Popup Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
32.0 hours of engineering $5,600
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-2785 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data