CVE-2019-0138
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 · uneditedImproper directory permissions in Intel(R) ACU Wizard version 12.0.0.129 and earlier may allow an authenticated user to potentially enable escalation of privilege via local access.
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 confidenceIntel(R) ACU Wizard versions 12.0.0.129 and earlier have improper directory permissions that allow authenticated users to modify directories they should not have write access to, potentially enabling local privilege escalation by replacing or modifying sensitive system files.
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<= 12.0.0.129CVSS 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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Check if Intel ACU Wizard is installedLook for the ACU Wizard installation directory, typically under Program Files or Program Files (x86) with 'Intel' or 'ACU' in the path. On Windows, also check Add/Remove Programs or the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for an entry named 'Intel ACU Wizard' or similar.Affected if The software is found installed on the system.
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Determine installed version of ACU WizardLocate the ACU Wizard executable (commonly named acu.exe, ACUWizard.exe, or similar) in the installation directory. Right-click the executable, select Properties, and check the Details tab for the Product Version. Alternatively, check version info in the Windows registry under the uninstall entry.Affected if The installed version is 12.0.0.129 or earlier.
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Inspect ACU Wizard installation directory permissionsRight-click the ACU Wizard installation folder, select Properties, then go to the Security tab. Click Advanced to view detailed permissions. Check the permissions for authenticated users or non-admin user groups.Affected if Authenticated users or standard user accounts have Write or Full Control permissions to the ACU Wizard installation directory.
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Check for write access to sensitive system directoriesIf ACU Wizard is installed in a system directory (such as Program Files, Windows, or System32), check whether standard users have write access to that location or can modify files within it.Affected if Non-admin users can write to directories that contain system binaries or sensitive configuration files.
The system is affected if Intel ACU Wizard version 12.0.0.129 or earlier is installed and non-privileged users have write access to the application directory or related system directories.
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 dataReview and correct directory permissions on the ACU Wizard installation directory and related system directories to enforce least-privilege access controls, restricting write access to authenticated non-admin users.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-0138 — 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-2019-0138 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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