CVE-2020-16268
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 · uneditedThe MSI installer in 1E Client 4.1.0.267 and 5.0.0.745 allows remote authenticated users and local users to gain elevated privileges via the repair option. This applies to installations that have a TRANSFORM (MST) with the option to disable the installation of the Nomad module. An attacker may craft a .reg file in a specific location that will be able to write to any registry key as an elevated 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 · moderate confidenceThe MSI installer for 1E Client versions 4.1.0.267 and 5.0.0.745 contains a privilege escalation vulnerability in the repair option. When installations use a TRANSFORM (MST) file that disables the Nomad module, an attacker can place a crafted .reg file in a specific location that gets executed during repair operations with elevated privileges, allowing writes to arbitrary registry keys.
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= 4.1.0.267= 5.0.0.745CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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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Identify installed 1E Client versionCheck the installed version of 1E Client in Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{ProductCode} or via Programs and FeaturesAffected if Version matches 4.1.0.267 or 5.0.0.745 (or falls within the affected range if the equals sign indicates versions up to and including these)
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Determine if an MST transform file is in useExamine MSI installation sources or check registry for CustomActionData referencing an MST file path, or inspect the installation package for linked transform filesAffected if An MST (transform) file is being used to modify the MSI installation
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Verify Nomad module is disabledInspect the MST transform file or check MSI properties for Nomad-related settings such as NOMAD_ENABLED=0 or similar flags that disable the Nomad componentAffected if The Nomad module is explicitly disabled via the transform configuration
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Assess repair location access controlsIdentify the repair location used by the MSI repair mechanism and check file system permissions on that directoryAffected if The location where .reg files are placed during repair operations is writable by non-privileged users
A user is affected if they have 1E Client version 4.1.0.267 or 5.0.0.745 installed with an MST transform that disables the Nomad module, and the repair location is writable to unprivileged attackers.
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 dataRestrict physical access and write permissions to the repair location where the .reg file can be placed; review and secure the MSI repair mechanism to prevent untrusted registry modifications, or apply vendor patches when available.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-16268 — 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-2020-16268 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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