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Macro ExpertApplication

CVE-2024-27674

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-04-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 4.9.4 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
Macro Expert through 4.9.4 allows BUILTIN\Users:(OI)(CI)(M) access to the "%PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\GrassSoft\Macro Expert" folder and thus an unprivileged user can escalate to SYSTEM by replacing the MacroService.exe binary.

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

Macro Expert through 4.9.4 installs with overly permissive file system ACLs, granting BUILTIN\Users Modify permissions (OI)(CI)(M) on the program directory. This allows any unprivileged user to replace the MacroService.exe binary, achieving SYSTEM-level code execution when the service restarts.

MitigationRemove Modify/Write permissions for the Users group on the Macro Expert installation directory; restrict write access to Administrators and SYSTEM only, or upgrade to a patched version.

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
Macro ExpertApplication
Affected:<= 4.9.4

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. Locate Macro Expert installation directory
    Check common installation paths: C:\Program Files\Macro Expert or C:\Program Files (x86)\Macro Expert. Also check for MacroService.exe using: Get-ChildItem -Path 'C:\Program Files','C:\Program Files (x86)' -Filter 'MacroService.exe' -Recurse -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Select-Object -ExpandProperty DirectoryName
    Affected if Cannot locate the installation - may indicate custom install location or different product name
  2. Determine Macro Expert version
    Once the installation directory is found, right-click on MacroService.exe or MacroExpert.exe, select Properties, then view the Details tab for Product Version. Alternatively, run: (Get-Item 'C:\Program Files\Macro Expert\MacroService.exe').VersionInfo.ProductVersion (adjust path as needed)
    Affected if Version displays as 4.9.4 or lower
  3. Verify service account configuration
    Open Services (services.msc), locate the Macro Expert service, right-click and select Properties, check the 'Log on as' account. Or run: Get-Service -Name '*Macro*' | Select-Object Name, StartType, @{N='LogOnAs';(Get-WmiObject Win32_Service -Filter "Name='$($_.Name)'").StartName}
    Affected if Service exists and runs under SYSTEM or a privileged account (vulnerability only matters if service can be restarted)
  4. Check ACLs on the installation directory
    Run: Get-Acl -Path 'C:\Program Files\Macro Expert' | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Access. Look for entries where IdentityReference contains 'Users' and FileSystemRights includes 'Modify' or 'Write'
    Affected if Users group (BUILTIN\Users or DOMAIN\Users) has Modify, Write, or FullControl permissions on the program directory
  5. Verify Users can create or replace files in program directory
    As a standard (non-admin) user test account, attempt to create a test file in the Macro Expert directory: New-Item -Path 'C:\Program Files\Macro Expert\test.txt' -ItemType File -ErrorAction Stop. Or check inheritance: (Get-Acl 'C:\Program Files\Macro Expert').AreAccessRulesProtected
    Affected if Non-admin user can write to the program directory or ACL inheritance is not protected (AreAccessRulesProtected returns False)

A system is affected if Macro Expert version is 4.9.4 or lower AND the Users group has Modify or Write permissions on the installation directory, allowing unprivileged users to replace the MacroService.exe binary for SYSTEM-level code execution upon service restart.

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 a release after 4.9.4
Interim mitigation

Remove Modify/Write permissions for the Users group on the Macro Expert installation directory; restrict write access to Administrators and SYSTEM only, or upgrade to a patched version.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Any version of Macro Expert newer than 4.9.4 that includes a security fix for the permission vulnerability (check vendor release notes)

  1. Check the official vendor website (www.macro-expert.com) or GitHub repository for a newer version of Macro Expert beyond 4.9.4 that addresses the permission vulnerability
  2. If a fixed version is available, download it from the official source only
  3. Backup any existing Macro Expert configuration data if needed
  4. Uninstall the current version of Macro Expert (4.9.4 or earlier)
  5. Install the updated version with corrected folder permissions
  6. Verify that the installation folder %PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\GrassSoft\Macro Expert no longer grants BUILTIN\Users write/modify permissions
  7. Verify that MacroService.exe has appropriate restrictive permissions (Administrators and SYSTEM only)
  8. Test that Macro Expert functionality works correctly after the update
Caveat Review release notes for the new version for any feature changes or compatibility considerations before upgrading

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

Fix this in Macro Expert Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
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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-2024-27674 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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