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Endpoint Security ToolsApplication · Bitdefender

CVE-2021-3579

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-28
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.2.1.65 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click

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 · unedited
Incorrect Default Permissions vulnerability in the bdservicehost.exe and Vulnerability.Scan.exe components as used in Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools for Windows, Total Security allows a local attacker to elevate privileges to NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM This issue affects: Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools for Windows versions prior to 7.2.1.65. Bitdefender Total Security versions prior to 7.2.1.65.

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 confidence

This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools and Total Security for Windows. The bdservicehost.exe and Vulnerability.Scan.exe components have incorrect default file/folder permissions that allow a local authenticated attacker to manipulate executables or configuration paths to gain NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM privileges.

MitigationUpgrade to Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools or Total Security version 7.2.1.65 or later to obtain the patched binaries with correct permissions.

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
Endpoint Security ToolsApplication
Affected:< 7.2.1.65
Total SecurityApplication
Affected:< 7.2.1.65

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed Bitdefender products
    Open Programs and Features in Control Panel or run 'Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion' via PowerShell to list installed software
    Affected if Neither Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools nor Bitdefender Total Security appears in the installed programs list
  2. Check Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools version
    Check the installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Bitdefender\Endpoint Security\) for bdservicehost.exe, right-click the file, select Properties, and view the Details tab for the version number
    Affected if Version is present but lower than 7.2.1.65
  3. Check Bitdefender Total Security version
    Check the installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Bitdefender\Total Security\) for Vulnerability.Scan.exe, right-click the file, select Properties, and view the Details tab for the version number
    Affected if Version is present but lower than 7.2.1.65
  4. Verify vulnerable components exist
    Navigate to the Bitdefender installation directories and confirm bdservicehost.exe and Vulnerability.Scan.exe files are present using Windows Explorer or command 'dir C:\Program Files\Bitdefender\*\*.exe'
    Affected if Either bdservicehost.exe or Vulnerability.Scan.exe exists in the installation folder
  5. Inspect file permissions on vulnerable executables
    Right-click bdservicehost.exe or Vulnerability.Scan.exe, select Properties, go to the Security tab, and verify which users have Write or Modify permissions on the file or its containing folder
    Affected if Authenticated users or non-admin accounts have Write or Modify permissions to the executables or their parent directories

A user is affected if either Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools or Total Security is installed with a version lower than 7.2.1.65 and the vulnerable executables exist with overly permissive file access controls.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 7.2.1.65 or later
Fixed in 7.2.1.65
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools or Total Security version 7.2.1.65 or later to obtain the patched binaries with correct permissions.

Recommended fix High confidence

7.2.1.65 or later

  1. Download Bitdefender Endpoint Security Tools for Windows version 7.2.1.65 or later from the official Bitdefender website (www.bitdefender.com)
  2. Download Bitdefender Total Security version 7.2.1.65 or later from the official Bitdefender website (www.bitdefender.com)
  3. Install the updated version on affected systems to remediate the incorrect default permissions vulnerability in bdservicehost.exe and Vulnerability.Scan.exe components

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Endpoint Security Tools Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-3579 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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