CVE-2020-26132
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in Home DNS Server 0.10. Due to insufficient access restrictions in the default installation directory, an attacker can elevate privileges by replacing the HomeDNSServer.exe binary.
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 confidenceHome DNS Server 0.10 has insufficient access restrictions on its default installation directory, allowing a local attacker with file system write access to replace the HomeDNSServer.exe binary with a malicious executable. When the service restarts or executes, it runs with elevated privileges, enabling privilege escalation to administrator or SYSTEM level.
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= 0.10CVSS 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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Verify Home DNS Server versionCheck if Home DNS Server version 0.10 is installed. Look in Program Files or the installation directory for HomeDNSServer.exe, then right-click the executable, select Properties, and check the Version tab for the product version.Affected if The installed version is exactly 0.10.
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Locate the installation directoryFind where HomeDNSServer.exe is installed. Common paths include C:\Program Files\Home DNS Server or C:\Program Files (x86)\Home DNS Server. Use the locate command or search for the file on the system.Affected if The executable exists in any directory on the system.
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Check NTFS write permissions on the installation folderRight-click the parent folder containing HomeDNSServer.exe, select Properties, then go to the Security tab. Click Advanced to view detailed permissions. Verify which users and groups have Write or Create Files/Write Data permissions on this folder.Affected if Non-administrator users or groups (such as Users, Authenticated Users, or Everyone) have Write or Create permissions on the folder.
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Verify service account privilegesOpen Services (services.msc), find the Home DNS Server service, right-click and select Properties. Check the Log on as account. If it runs as LocalSystem, or any account with admin privileges, the privilege escalation can occur.Affected if The service runs as LocalSystem, a domain admin account, or any account with elevated privileges.
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Test file replacement accessUsing a non-admin account or by examining effective permissions, attempt to verify if a standard user can modify or replace HomeDNSServer.exe in the installation folder.Affected if A standard (non-privileged) user account has the ability to write or replace files in the installation directory.
The environment is affected if Home DNS Server 0.10 is installed and non-admin users have write access to the folder containing HomeDNSServer.exe, especially if the service runs 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 dataConfigure proper NTFS access control lists (ACLs) on the installation directory to deny write permissions to non-admin users, and ensure the service account runs with the minimum required privileges rather than elevated domain credentials.
- 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-2020-26132 — 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-2020-26132 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data