CVE-2021-31519
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 incorrect permission vulnerability in the product installer folders for Trend Micro HouseCall for Home Networks version 5.3.1179 and below could allow an attacker to escalate privileges by placing arbitrary code on a specified folder and have that code be executed by an Administrator who is running a scan. Please note that an attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target 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 · moderate confidenceThis is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Trend Micro HouseCall for Home Networks (versions 5.3.1179 and below). The product installer folders have incorrect permissions that allow a low-privileged attacker to place arbitrary code in a specific folder. When an Administrator runs a scan, the product executes code from these folders with elevated privileges, allowing the attacker to escalate to administrator-level access.
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<= 5.3.1179CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/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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Check if Trend Micro HouseCall for Home Networks is installedLook for the product in the Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for an entry named 'HouseCall for Home Networks', or check for the installation folder in Program Files or Program Files (x86) under Trend MicroAffected if The product is present on the system
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Determine the installed versionOpen the registry key found in the previous step and read the 'DisplayVersion' value, or right-click on HouseCall.exe in the installation folder and select Properties to view the File VersionAffected if The installed version is 5.3.1179 or lower (any version up to and including 5.3.1179)
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Identify the product installer foldersLocate the main installation directory (commonly Program Files\Trend Micro\HouseCall for Home Networks or Program Files (x86)\Trend Micro\HouseCall for Home Networks) and examine subfolders that may contain installer-related contentAffected if The product installation directory and its subfolders exist on the system
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Check folder permissions for weak access controlsOpen Command Prompt as a standard (non-admin) user and run 'icacls "<installation_folder>"' to list permissions, or use icacls with a test user account to verify write permissions on the installer folders and subfoldersAffected if Standard users or the 'Users' group have Write, Modify, or Full Control permissions on any installer folder
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Verify low-privilege code placement is possibleAs a standard user, attempt to create a test file (e.g., a .exe or .dll) in the identified installer folders to confirm write access existsAffected if A low-privileged user can create or modify files in the installer folders
The system is affected if Trend Micro HouseCall for Home Networks version 5.3.1179 or lower is installed AND the product folders grant write/modify permissions to non-admin users.
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 dataFix the file system permissions on the product installer folders to prevent low-privileged users from writing or modifying files in those locations. Restrict folder access to only Administrators and the SYSTEM account.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-31519 — 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-2021-31519 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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