CVE-2020-5794
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 Nessus Network Monitor versions 5.11.0, 5.11.1, and 5.12.0 for Windows could allow an authenticated local attacker to execute arbitrary code by copying user-supplied files to a specially constructed path in a specifically named user directory. The attacker needs valid credentials on the Windows system to exploit this vulnerability.
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 confidenceNessus Network Monitor versions 5.11.0-5.12.0 for Windows contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability where an authenticated attacker can achieve arbitrary code execution by copying user-supplied files to a specifically constructed path within a specially named user directory. The attack requires valid Windows credentials and local access to the target system.
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= 5.11.0= 5.11.1= 5.12.0CVSS 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 Nessus Network Monitor is installedCheck for Nessus Network Monitor installation on the Windows system via Programs and Features, or query the Windows registry for the product installationAffected if Nessus Network Monitor is not installed, the system is not vulnerable to this specific CVE
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Determine the installed versionUse the Windows command 'tenable-nnm -v' or check the version displayed in the application, or locate the executable and check its file propertiesAffected if The installed version matches 5.11.0, 5.11.1, or 5.12.0 exactly
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Confirm the service exists and is runningOpen Services.msc and look for 'Nessus Network Monitor' service, or run 'sc query nessusnx' from command promptAffected if The Nessus Network Monitor service is installed and running, making exploitation possible
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Verify authentication requirementsConfirm that valid Windows credentials are required to exploit this vulnerability - check if untrusted local user accounts exist with access to the systemAffected if Untrusted or low-privilege users have local access and valid Windows credentials, enabling the attack vector
A system is affected if Nessus Network Monitor version 5.11.0, 5.11.1, or 5.12.0 is installed and running on Windows with accessible local user accounts.
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 dataUpgrade Nessus Network Monitor to a patched version beyond 5.12.0. Additionally, restrict local user privileges and monitor for suspicious file operations in user directories.
- Consultation1.0 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-2020-5794 — 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-2020-5794 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