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Virtual Desktop InfrastructureApplication · Zoom

CVE-2023-34120

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-06-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.14.0 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
Improper privilege management in Zoom for Windows, Zoom Rooms for Windows, and Zoom VDI for Windows clients before 5.14.0 may allow an authenticated user to potentially enable an escalation of privilege via local access. Users may potentially utilize higher level system privileges maintained by the Zoom client to spawn processes with escalated privileges.

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 Zoom Windows clients (Zoom for Windows, Zoom Rooms for Windows, and Zoom VDI for Windows) prior to version 5.14.0. The Zoom client maintains higher-level system privileges, and an authenticated local user can abuse this to spawn processes with elevated privileges, bypassing proper privilege management controls.

MitigationUpdate Zoom clients to version 5.14.0 or later to remediate the improper privilege management. Organizations should deploy the update via patch management and verify completion across all affected Windows endpoints.

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
Virtual Desktop InfrastructureApplication
Affected:< 5.14.0

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. Check if Zoom Windows client is installed
    Look for Zoom installation directories or installed programs on the Windows system (typically in Program Files or Program Files (x86))
    Affected if Zoom for Windows, Zoom Rooms for Windows, or Zoom VDI for Windows is found on the system
  2. Retrieve the installed Zoom version
    Use Windows system tools or the Zoom client itself to view the version number (often accessible via the client interface or system registry)
    Affected if A version number is returned that is lower than 5.14.0
  3. Compare the installed version to the affected range
    Compare the retrieved version against the vulnerable range (any version prior to 5.14.0)
    Affected if The installed version is earlier than 5.14.0 (for example, 5.13.5, 5.12.0, etc.)
  4. Identify Zoom processes running with elevated privileges
    Use Task Manager or command-line tools to examine running Zoom processes and their privilege level
    Affected if Zoom processes are running with higher-level system privileges than a standard user account

If Zoom for Windows, Zoom Rooms for Windows, or Zoom VDI for Windows is installed with a version earlier than 5.14.0, the environment is affected by this privilege escalation vulnerability.

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 5.14.0 or later
Fixed in 5.14.0
Interim mitigation

Update Zoom clients to version 5.14.0 or later to remediate the improper privilege management. Organizations should deploy the update via patch management and verify completion across all affected Windows endpoints.

Recommended fix High confidence

5.14.0 or later

  1. Verify current Zoom client version by opening Zoom and navigating to the profile picture > Settings > About Zoom
  2. Download Zoom version 5.14.0 or later from the official Zoom website (explore.zoom.us)
  3. Close all Zoom processes and applications
  4. Install the updated Zoom client version 5.14.0 or later
  5. Restart the Zoom client and verify the version in Settings > About Zoom confirms the update

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

Fix this in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.

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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-2023-34120 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