CVE-2019-3585
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 · uneditedPrivilege Escalation vulnerability in Microsoft Windows client (McTray.exe) in McAfee VirusScan Enterprise (VSE) 8.8 prior to Patch 14 may allow local users to interact with the On-Access Scan Messages - Threat Alert Window with elevated privileges via running McAfee Tray with elevated 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 · high confidenceMcTray.exe in McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.8 prior to Patch 14 contains a privilege escalation vulnerability where local users can interact with the On-Access Scan Messages Threat Alert Window running with elevated privileges, potentially allowing privilege escalation to SYSTEM or administrative levels.
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= 8.8CVSS 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:3.1/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.
-
Confirm McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.8 is installedCheck the Windows registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\McAfee\VS or look in Add/Remove Programs for McAfee VirusScan EnterpriseAffected if The product is not found or a different version is installed (this CVE only affects 8.8)
-
Check the installed patch levelLook in the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\McAfee\VS\8.8.0 for the PatchLevel value, or check the about dialog in the VirusScan consoleAffected if The patch level is below 14 (Patch 13, 12, or earlier)
-
Verify if McTray.exe is runningOpen Task Manager or run 'tasklist /v' and look for McTray.exe in the process listAffected if McTray.exe is running and the system has not been patched to version 14 or later
-
Confirm On-Access Scan is enabledOpen the VirusScan console, go to On-Access Scan properties, or check the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\McAfee\VSCore\OnAccessScannerAffected if On-Access Scan is enabled - this is what triggers the Threat Alert Window that is exploitable
-
Check if McTray.exe is running with elevated privilegesUse Process Explorer or run 'tasklist /v | findstr McTray' and check the elevation column, or inspect the process tokenAffected if McTray.exe shows as running with elevated privileges (Highest: Run as administrator)
A user is affected if they have McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.8 installed with a patch level below 14, with On-Access Scan enabled, and with McTray.exe running with elevated privileges.
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 McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.8 Patch 14 or later. Additionally, avoid running McTray.exe with elevated privileges unless necessary, and restrict local user access to the McAfee tray process.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-3585 — 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-2019-3585 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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