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ProtonvpnApplication · Protonmail

CVE-2018-10169

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-04-16
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
ProtonVPN 1.3.3 for Windows suffers from a SYSTEM privilege escalation vulnerability through the "ProtonVPN Service" service. This service establishes an NetNamedPipe endpoint that allows arbitrary installed applications to connect and call publicly exposed methods. The "Connect" method accepts a class instance argument that provides attacker control of the OpenVPN command line. An attacker can specify a dynamic library plugin that should run for every new VPN connection. This plugin will execute code in the context of the SYSTEM user.

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 confidence

The ProtonVPN Service in version 1.3.3 exposes a .NET Remoting NetNamedPipe endpoint callable by any local application. The 'Connect' method accepts an attacker-controlled class instance that allows specification of dynamic library plugins in the OpenVPN command line, which execute as SYSTEM when a VPN connection is established.

MitigationUpgrade to a patched version of ProtonVPN. If patching is not possible, restrict local user access to the system and consider disabling the ProtonVPN service until a patch is available.

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
ProtonvpnApplication
Affected:= 1.3.3

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
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checks

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

  1. Identify if ProtonVPN is installed
    Check for ProtonVPN installation in the system: Look for 'ProtonVPN' folder in Program Files or Program Files (x86), and check registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for ProtonVPN entry
    Affected if ProtonVPN version 1.3.3 is found installed on the system
  2. Verify the installed ProtonVPN version
    Open Programs and Features or check the uninstall registry key to read the installed version number
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 1.3.3
  3. Check if ProtonVPN service is running
    Open Services console (services.msc) and locate 'ProtonVPN Service' or check via command: sc query ProtonVPN
    Affected if The ProtonVPN service is currently running (status shows RUNNING)
  4. Confirm NetNamedPipe endpoint exposure
    Inspect the ProtonVPN application logs or configuration files for evidence of .NET Remoting NetNamedPipe endpoint initialization. This is typically indicated by pipe name references in logs or configuration.
    Affected if The NetNamedPipe endpoint is active and accepting connections

System is affected if ProtonVPN version 1.3.3 is installed, the ProtonVPN service is running, and the vulnerable .NET Remoting NetNamedPipe endpoint is exposed.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade to a patched version of ProtonVPN. If patching is not possible, restrict local user access to the system and consider disabling the ProtonVPN service until a patch is available.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Latest stable ProtonVPN version for Windows (newer than 1.3.3)

  1. Download the latest version of ProtonVPN for Windows from the official website (protonvpn.com) or the Microsoft Store
  2. Uninstall the current ProtonVPN 1.3.3 installation completely
  3. Install the newly downloaded/latest version of ProtonVPN
  4. Restart your computer to ensure the old service is fully removed and the new service is properly registered
  5. Verify the new version is installed by checking Help > About in the ProtonVPN application
Caveat Minor: User preferences and configuration may need to be re-entered after reinstalling; OpenVPN configuration profiles should remain but verify they are intact

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Protonvpn Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2018-10169 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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