CVE-2020-9326
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 · uneditedBeyondTrust Privilege Management for Windows and Mac (aka PMWM; formerly Avecto Defendpoint) 5.1 through 5.5 before 5.5 SR1 mishandles command-line arguments with PowerShell .ps1 file extensions present, leading to a DefendpointService.exe crash.
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 confidenceBeyondTrust Privilege Management for Windows and Mac versions 5.1 through 5.5 before 5.5 SR1 mishandles command-line arguments when PowerShell .ps1 file extensions are present, causing the DefendpointService.exe to crash. This results in a denial of service condition for the privilege management service.
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>= 5.1, < 5.5= 5.5CVSS 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
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 BeyondTrust Privilege Management is installedCheck for the presence of BeyondTrust Privilege Management software on the system. Look for installation directories such as C:\Program Files\BeyondTrust\Privilege Management or check Add/Remove Programs for 'BeyondTrust Privilege Management' or 'Defendpoint'.Affected if The software is not installed, this CVE does not apply.
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Determine the installed version of BeyondTrust Privilege ManagementLocate the version information for the installed BeyondTrust Privilege Management. Check the DefendpointService.exe file properties (right-click > Properties > Details) or look for version information in the installation directory. Alternatively, check the Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\BeyondTrust\Privilege Management for the version value.Affected if The installed version is 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, or 5.5 (all versions from 5.1 through 5.5 inclusive, but NOT 5.5 SR1 or later).
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Verify the DefendpointService is runningOpen Windows Services (services.msc) and locate the 'Defendpoint Service' or 'BeyondTrust Privilege Management Service'. Check its status in the Status column, or run 'Get-Service DefendpointService' in PowerShell.Affected if The service is running and the version is within the affected range (5.1 to 5.5). The DoS condition only triggers when the service is active.
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Identify PowerShell .ps1 file execution contextReview any configuration or policy settings that govern how BeyondTrust Privilege Management handles PowerShell .ps1 files. Check the application logs or event logs for recent crashes involving DefendpointService.exe when .ps1 files are processed.Affected if The service has recently crashed or is unstable when PowerShell scripts (.ps1 files) are processed through the privilege management system.
You are affected if BeyondTrust Privilege Management version 5.1 through 5.5 is installed AND the DefendpointService is running, with the service crashing when PowerShell .ps1 files are handled.
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 data5.5
Update BeyondTrust Privilege Management to version 5.5 SR1 or later to remediate the vulnerability.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 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 $1,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-9326 — 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-2020-9326 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