CVE-2020-24562
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 · uneditedA vulnerability in Trend Micro OfficeScan XG SP1 on Microsoft Windows may allow an attacker to create a hard link to any file on the system, which then could be manipulated to gain a privilege escalation and code execution. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability. This CVE is similar, but not identical to CVE-2020-24556.
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 confidenceThis is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Trend Micro OfficeScan XG SP1 on Windows. The vulnerability allows a low-privileged attacker to create hard links to arbitrary files on the system, which can then be manipulated to escalate privileges and achieve code execution. This appears to be a time-of-check-time-of-use (TOCTOU) or improper file handling flaw in the endpoint protection software's file operations.
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= xgCVSS 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.
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Confirm OfficeScan XG is installedCheck for the presence of Trend Micro OfficeScan in installed programs via Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run: reg query 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\' /s | findstr OfficeScanAffected if OfficeScan XG is found on the system
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Identify the exact OfficeScan versionLocate the OfficeScan version information: typically in the product UI under Help > About, or check the registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\TrendMicro\OfficeScan\service\CurrentVersionAffected if The version is confirmed as OfficeScan XG (build 17.x or 18.x series)
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Verify the OfficeScan service is runningOpen Services console (services.msc) and locate the 'OfficeScan NT Listener' or 'TMlistener' service, or run: sc query OfficeScanAffected if The OfficeScan service is active and running on the system
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Check for presence of SP1 patchReview installed updates or patch level: open the OfficeScan console and navigate to Updates > Component History, or check the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\TrendMicro\OfficeScan\service\PatchLevelAffected if No recent security patches for OfficeScan XG have been applied, or the patch level is below the fixed version
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Review user permissions on OfficeScan directoriesInspect file permissions on OfficeScan installation folder (typically C:\Program Files\Trend Micro\OfficeScan) using icacls or File Explorer Security tabAffected if Low-privileged users have write permissions to directories used by OfficeScan for file operations
The system is likely affected if Trend Micro OfficeScan XG is installed without the vendor patch, as the vulnerability allows low-privileged users to create hard links that can be exploited for privilege escalation.
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 the vendor-supplied patch or upgrade to a fixed version of Trend Micro OfficeScan. As an interim control, restrict local user permissions and monitor for suspicious file manipulation activity.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-24562 — 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-2020-24562 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
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