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Safenet Authentication ClientApplication · Thalesgroup

CVE-2023-7016

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.8 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
A flaw in Thales SafeNet Authentication Client prior to 10.8 R10 on Windows allows an attacker to execute code at a SYSTEM level via local access.

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

Thales SafeNet Authentication Client versions prior to 10.8 R10 on Windows contain a local privilege escalation vulnerability allowing an authenticated local attacker to execute arbitrary code with SYSTEM-level privileges. The vulnerability stems from improper privilege management within the client application.

MitigationUpgrade Thales SafeNet Authentication Client to version 10.8 R10 or later on all affected Windows systems. Given the local attack vector, prioritize patching systems accessible to untrusted local users.

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
Safenet Authentication ClientApplication
Affected:< 10.8= 10.8

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 SafeNet Authentication Client is installed
    Open Windows Registry Editor and navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\, or use Command Prompt: wmic product get name,version | findstr "SafeNet"
    Affected if SafeNet Authentication Client appears in the installed programs list
  2. Locate the installed version number
    Check the registry uninstall entry for the Version value, or run: wmic product where "name like '%SafeNet%'" get version
    Affected if A version number is returned (for example, 10.7, 10.8, 10.8 R1, etc.)
  3. Compare installed version against affected range
    Compare your discovered version to the affected range: any version prior to 10.8 R10 (including version 10.8 itself) is vulnerable. Versions 10.8 R10 and later are fixed.
    Affected if Installed version is less than 10.8 R10, or is exactly version 10.8 (without the R10 designation)
  4. Confirm the product is running on Windows
    This vulnerability affects only Windows systems. Verify the operating system by running: ver or systeminfo | findstr "OS Name"
    Affected if The system is Windows and the SafeNet Authentication Client version is in the affected range

If SafeNet Authentication Client is installed on Windows and the version is any release prior to 10.8 R10 (including version 10.8), the system is vulnerable to local privilege escalation.

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 10.8 or later
Fixed in 10.8
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Thales SafeNet Authentication Client to version 10.8 R10 or later on all affected Windows systems. Given the local attack vector, prioritize patching systems accessible to untrusted local users.

Recommended fix High confidence

Safenet Authentication Client 10.8 R10 or later

  1. 1. Identify the current installed version of Safenet Authentication Client on the Windows system by checking Add/Remove Programs or the application's About/Help section
  2. 2. Download the Safenet Authentication Client version 10.8 R10 (or later) from the Thales Support Portal at supportportal.thalesgroup.com
  3. 3. Ensure you have appropriate administrative privileges to perform the upgrade
  4. 4. Backup any critical configuration data or certificates managed by the application before proceeding
  5. 5. Uninstall the current version of Safenet Authentication Client via Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features
  6. 6. Restart the Windows system if prompted after uninstallation
  7. 7. Install the downloaded Safenet Authentication Client 10.8 R10 or later version
  8. 8. Restart the system if required after installation completes
Caveat Ensure compatibility with existing authentication tokens, smart cards, or PKI infrastructure before upgrading; test in a non-production environment first

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

Fix this in Safenet Authentication Client 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-2023-7016 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