dbcve.org
Supportassist For Home PcsApplication · Dell

CVE-2023-48670

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-12-22
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs version 3.14.1 and prior versions contain a privilege escalation vulnerability in the installer. A local low privileged authenticated attacker may potentially exploit this vulnerability, leading to the execution of arbitrary executable on the operating system with elevated 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 · moderate confidence

Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs versions 3.14.1 and prior contain a privilege escalation vulnerability in the installer component. A local attacker with low-level authenticated access can exploit improper privilege handling during the installation process to execute arbitrary executable code with elevated SYSTEM-level privileges.

MitigationUpdate Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs to a version newer than 3.14.1. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict physical and remote local access to trusted administrators only and monitor for suspicious installer activity.

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
Supportassist For Home PcsApplication
Affected:= 3.14.2.45116

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. Verify Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs is installed
    Open Windows Settings > Apps & Features, or run 'Get-Package -Name *SupportAssist*' in PowerShell to list installed Dell SupportAssist packages
    Affected if The application is not found in the system, indicating it is not installed and therefore not affected by this specific vulnerability
  2. Determine the installed version of Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs
    In PowerShell, run 'Get-Package -Name *SupportAssist* | Select-Object Name,Version' or check the version in Programs and Features. Compare the version number to 3.14.1
    Affected if The installed version is 3.14.1 or any version prior to 3.14.1, indicating the system is vulnerable
  3. Confirm the exact version build number
    If version 3.14.1 is found, right-click the installed program in Programs and Features, select Properties, and check the Details tab for the File Version or Product Version
    Affected if The detailed version shows a build number earlier than 3.14.2.45116, confirming the vulnerable version is installed
  4. Check for SYSTEM-level installer processes
    Open Task Manager during any SupportAssist installation or repair operation and examine the running processes. Look for installer executable running under the SYSTEM account
    Affected if Installer processes are observed running with SYSTEM-level privileges while the user has only low-level authenticated access, indicating the vulnerable condition exists
  5. Verify local authenticated user access level
    Run 'whoami /groups' in Command Prompt to list current user group memberships. Check if the current user is in the Administrators group or has limited user privileges
    Affected if The user has low-level authenticated access (standard user account) but can trigger installer operations, creating the privilege escalation condition described in the CVE

A system is affected if Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs version 3.14.1 or prior is installed, the installer component is accessible, and a low-level authenticated user can trigger installer operations that execute with SYSTEM privileges.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs to a version newer than 3.14.1. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict physical and remote local access to trusted administrators only and monitor for suspicious installer activity.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs version 3.14.2.45116 or later

  1. 1. Verify the current installed version of Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs by opening the application and navigating to the About or Settings section.
  2. 2. If the installed version is 3.14.1 or earlier, download the latest version of Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs from the official Dell support website at www.dell.com.
  3. 3. Run the installer as the current user (no administrator privileges required for the installation process).
  4. 4. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the installation.
  5. 5. After installation, verify the new version by checking the About section to confirm the version has been updated.

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

Fix this in Supportassist For Home Pcs Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,390
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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-2023-48670 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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