CVE-2024-7236
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 · uneditedAVG AntiVirus Free icarus Arbitrary File Creation Denial of Service Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows local attackers to create a denial-of-service condition on affected installations of AVG AntiVirus Free. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the AVG Installer. By creating a symbolic link, an attacker can abuse the update functionality to create a file. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to create a persistent denial-of-service condition on the system. Was ZDI-CAN-22942.
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 vulnerability in AVG AntiVirus Free's Installer (icarus) allows a local attacker with low-privileged code execution to create arbitrary files via symbolic link abuse in the update functionality, leading to a persistent denial-of-service condition.
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= 23.12.8700.812CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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.
-
Confirm AVG AntiVirus Free installationCheck for AVG AntiVirus Free in installed programs via Windows Registry (HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\) or using 'Get-ItemProperty' in PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*AVG*AntiVirus*Free*'}Affected if AVG AntiVirus Free is present on the system
-
Retrieve installed version numberQuery the DisplayVersion value from the same registry key used in the previous step, or run: (Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*AVG*AntiVirus*Free*'}).DisplayVersionAffected if Version equals exactly 23.12.8700.812
-
Verify update service configurationCheck if the AVG update service (avgupd) or related update components are present and enabled via Services console (services.msc) or PowerShell: Get-Service | Where-Object {$_.Name -like '*avg*' -or $_.DisplayName -like '*AVG*'}Affected if AVG update service is installed and enabled, making the symlink abuse in update functionality applicable
A system is affected if AVG AntiVirus Free version 23.12.8700.812 is installed with the update service enabled, as the vulnerability exploits symlink abuse specifically within the update functionality.
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.
From vendor dataApply vendor patches from AVG when available. In the interim, restrict symbolic link creation permissions and limit low-privileged user code execution capabilities to reduce attack surface.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,304.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-7236 — 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-2024-7236 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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