CVE-2024-13959
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 · uneditedLink Following Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability in TuneupSvc.exe in AVG TuneUp 24.2.16593.9844 on Windows allows local attackers to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the context of SYSTEM via creating a symbolic link and leveraging the service to delete a directory
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 confidenceThis is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in AVG TuneUp's TuneupSvc.exe service. A local attacker can create a symbolic link to manipulate the service into deleting an arbitrary directory, leading to privilege escalation to SYSTEM context and execution of arbitrary code.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify AVG TuneUp is installedCheck for AVG TuneUp in Windows Programs and Features (Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features), or look for its installation directory typically at C:\Program Files\AVG\AVG TuneUpAffected if If AVG TuneUp appears in installed programs or the directory exists, the product is present
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Find installed AVG TuneUp versionRight-click the AVG TuneUp entry in Programs and Features and select Change, or open the application and navigate to Menu > Settings > About to view the version numberAffected if If the version is older than the patched version, the system may be vulnerable
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Locate TuneupSvc.exe service fileNavigate to the AVG TuneUp installation directory (commonly C:\Program Files\AVG\AVG TuneUp\) and verify that TuneupSvc.exe existsAffected if If TuneupSvc.exe exists, the vulnerable service component is present
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Check TuneupSvc service statusOpen Services (services.msc), locate the AVG TuneUp service, and verify its current status (Running/Stopped) and startup typeAffected if If the service is running or set to automatic startup, the attack surface is active
If AVG TuneUp is installed with TuneupSvc.exe present and the version predates the vendor patch, the environment is vulnerable to this privilege escalation flaw.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply the vendor patch or update AVG TuneUp to the latest version. If no patch is available, consider removing AVG TuneUp until a fix is released, or restrict access to the service to trusted administrators only.
AVG TuneUp 24.3 or later (contact Gen Digital/AVG support for exact fixed version number)
- 1. Open AVG TuneUp on the affected Windows system
- 2. Navigate to the application settings or help section
- 3. Check for available updates - the application should automatically detect and offer version 24.3 or later which contains the security fix
- 4. If automatic update is not available, download the latest AVG TuneUp version directly from the official AVG website (www.avg.com) or Gen Digital support portal
- 5. Install the update and restart the system
- 6. Verify the installed version is newer than 24.2.16593.9844
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-13959 — 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-2024-13959 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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- 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