Gateway Plug InApplication · Citrix
CVE-2020-8258
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 · uneditedImproper privilege management on services run by Citrix Gateway Plug-in for Windows, versions before and including 13.0-61.48 and 12.1-58.15, allows an attacker to modify arbitrary files.
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 Citrix Gateway Plug-in for Windows (versions <=13.0-61.48 and <=12.1-58.15) contains a privilege management flaw in how its services handle file operations. Services run by the plugin execute with elevated Windows privileges but fail to properly validate authorization, allowing an authenticated attacker to modify arbitrary files on the 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
Gateway Plug InApplication
>= 12.0, <= 12.1-58>= 13.0, <= 13.0-61.48CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
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.
-
Confirm Citrix Gateway Plug-in for Windows is installedOpen Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run 'Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product' in PowerShell, and look for entries named 'Citrix Gateway Plug-in' or 'Citrix VPN'Affected if The program is not listed in installed programs - you are not affected
-
Identify the installed versionIn Programs and Features, click on the Citrix Gateway Plug-in entry to view the version, or check the registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{ProductCode} for the DisplayVersion valueAffected if The version falls within 12.0 through 12.1-58.x OR 13.0 through 13.0-61.48 - you are potentially affected
-
Verify the Citrix Gateway services are presentOpen Services (services.msc) and look for services with 'Citrix' or 'Gateway' in the name, or run 'Get-Service | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like "*Citrix*"}' in PowerShellAffected if The plugin is installed AND runs services under elevated (System or Administrator) privileges - the vulnerability condition is present
You are affected if Citrix Gateway Plug-in for Windows versions 12.0 through 12.1-58.x or 13.0 through 13.0-61.48 are installed and the plugin's services run with elevated Windows 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 dataUpdate Citrix Gateway Plug-in for Windows to patched versions beyond 13.0-61.48 and 12.1-58.15. Prioritize updating systems with the plugin installed, as the vulnerability allows authenticated local attackers to escalate privileges via arbitrary file modification.
Fix this in Gateway Plug In
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-8258 — 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-2020-8258 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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