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Virtual Private Network Software Development KitApplication · Pango

CVE-2020-12828

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-05-21
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.3.3.218 or later.
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 issue was discovered in AnchorFree VPN SDK before 1.3.3.218. The VPN SDK service takes certain executable locations over a socket bound to localhost. Binding to the socket and providing a path where a malicious executable file resides leads to executing the malicious executable file with SYSTEM 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 confidence

The AnchorFree VPN SDK before version 1.3.3.218 contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability. The VPN SDK service binds to a localhost socket and accepts executable paths without proper validation. An attacker with local access can send a malicious executable path to this socket, causing the service to execute the file with SYSTEM privileges.

MitigationUpgrade to AnchorFree VPN SDK version 1.3.3.218 or later which addresses the unsafe path handling. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict local access to the vulnerable service and monitor for suspicious process execution originating from the VPN SDK service.

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
Virtual Private Network Software Development KitApplication
Affected:< 1.3.3.218

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:3.1/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 Pango or AnchorFree VPN SDK is installed
    Review installed software for applications that use the AnchorFree/Pango VPN SDK, such as Hotspot Shield, Betternet, or other VPN clients based on this SDK. Check Program Files directories for VPN-related executables from AnchorFree or Pango.
    Affected if Any VPN application using the AnchorFree/Pango VPN SDK is present on the system.
  2. Determine the installed VPN SDK version
    Locate the VPN SDK component files (typically named similarly to anchorservicemgr, pangoservicemgr, or vpncore related binaries) and check their version properties or file metadata. Compare the version number to 1.3.3.218.
    Affected if The installed SDK version is lower than 1.3.3.218.
  3. Verify the VPN SDK service is running
    Check running services or processes for any VPN-related service (commonly named similar to AnchorFree Service, Pango Service, or the specific VPN client service). Use task manager or command-line tools like sc query or tasklist.
    Affected if A VPN SDK service is actively running on the system.
  4. Check service network binding configuration
    Inspect the running VPN service configuration to determine if it binds to a localhost socket (127.0.0.1). Use netstat or similar tools to identify listening ports associated with the VPN service.
    Affected if The VPN SDK service is bound to a localhost socket and accepts external input.

The system is affected if it runs any VPN application using the AnchorFree/Pango VPN SDK version prior to 1.3.3.218 with an exposed localhost service socket.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 1.3.3.218 or later
Fixed in 1.3.3.218
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to AnchorFree VPN SDK version 1.3.3.218 or later which addresses the unsafe path handling. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict local access to the vulnerable service and monitor for suspicious process execution originating from the VPN SDK service.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

1.3.3.218 or later

  1. 1. Identify all systems running AnchorFree VPN SDK (Virtual Private Network Software Development Kit)
  2. 2. Check the current version of the VPN SDK installed on each system
  3. 3. If the installed version is earlier than 1.3.3.218, download the updated VPN SDK version 1.3.3.218 or later from the vendor (www.pango.co)
  4. 4. Test the updated SDK in a non-production environment to verify compatibility
  5. 5. Apply the upgrade to production systems following standard change management procedures
  6. 6. Verify the upgrade was successful by confirming the new version is 1.3.3.218 or later
  7. 7. Monitor systems for any abnormal behavior after the upgrade

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

Fix this in Virtual Private Network Software Development Kit Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,160
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
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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-2020-12828 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