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CWE-73Weakness · CWE-73

CVE-2026-8920

HIGH · 8.5 CVSS v4.0 Published 2026-07-15
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
87/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click 6 weeks old

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
Improper Restriction of Communication Channel to Intended Endpoints and External Control of File Name or Path in Aura Wallpaper Service allow a local user to perform file operations by sending crafted commands containing an arbitrary file path and bypassing the service’s path restrictions . On specific models , this can also cause a single feature to become unavailable . Refer to the ' Security Update for Aura Wallpaper Service ' section on the ASUS Security Advisory for more information.

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

Aura Wallpaper Service on ASUS systems contains a path traversal vulnerability allowing local authenticated users to bypass service restrictions and perform arbitrary file operations via crafted commands containing arbitrary file paths. The service fails to properly validate file paths, enabling potential file system access beyond intended boundaries.

MitigationApply the ASUS security update for Aura Wallpaper Service when available. If no patch is immediately available, consider disabling the Aura Wallpaper Service or implementing network segmentation to limit exposure, as this is a local attack vector requiring authenticated access.

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
High
Privileges
Low
Authentication
X
User interaction
None
Scope
X

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

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. Confirm Aura Wallpaper Service presence
    Check if the Aura Wallpaper Service is installed on the system by looking for its executable or service entry. On Windows, check Services.msc or registry for 'Aura Wallpaper Service' or 'ASUS Aura Wallpaper Service'. On affected systems, the service executable is typically named 'AuraWallpaperService.exe' or similar in the ASUS software directory.
    Affected if The Aura Wallpaper Service is installed on the system and the user has local authenticated access to interact with it.
  2. Verify service is running
    Check if the Aura Wallpaper Service is currently running. Use task manager, services.msc, or command 'sc query AuraWallpaperService' (or the actual service name found in step 1) to determine running status.
    Affected if The Aura Wallpaper Service is currently running and accepting commands.
  3. Identify service executable and version
    Locate the service executable file on disk and retrieve its file properties for version information. Common paths include C:\Program Files\ASUS\Aura Wallpaper Service\ or C:\Program Files (x86)\ASUS\Aura Wallpaper Service\. Right-click the executable and select Properties > Details to view version number, or use 'wmic product get name,version' if it was installed as MSI.
    Affected if A version number is displayed and can be compared against the fixed version once ASUS releases the security update.
  4. Test service command interface
    If you have local authenticated access, examine whether the service exposes a command interface (named pipe, RPC, or similar) that accepts file path parameters. Document any interfaces found using tools like Process Monitor or by examining service documentation if available.
    Affected if The service accepts file path parameters in commands without proper sanitization, enabling path traversal.
  5. Check for ASUS software updates
    Check for ASUS software updates via ASUS Live Update, MyASUS application, or the ASUS support website. Look specifically for updates to Aura Wallpaper Service or related ASUS Aura software.
    Affected if An update for Aura Wallpaper Service is available but not yet applied, indicating the system may still be running a vulnerable version.

The system is affected if the Aura Wallpaper Service is installed and running, accepts unauthenticated or improperly validated file path commands from local authenticated users, and the installed version has not been patched by ASUS.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the ASUS security update for Aura Wallpaper Service when available. If no patch is immediately available, consider disabling the Aura Wallpaper Service or implementing network segmentation to limit exposure, as this is a local attack vector requiring authenticated access.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,970
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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-2026-8920 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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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