CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2023-29080NVD status: Deferred

InstallShield: Files or Directories Accessible to External Parties

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2023-29080 is a high-severity files or directories accessible to external parties vulnerability in InstallShield from Revenera, with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.5 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists versions 2022 R2 (28.0.0.763), 2021 R2 (27.0.0.126) as the first without the flaw, so updating InstallShield to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.17% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Update InstallShield to 2022 R2 (28.0.0.763) or 2021 R2 (27.0.0.126), whichever matches your release line, or a later version.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
ReveneraInstallShield2022 R2 up to, but not including, 2022 R2 (28.0.0.763); 2021 R2 up to, but not including, 2021 R2 (27.0.0.126)2022 R2 (28.0.0.763), 2021 R2 (27.0.0.126)

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.

How the severity score breaks down

Attack vector
LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
Attack complexity
LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
Attack requirements
NoneThe attack does not depend on a particular deployment or configuration.
Privileges required
LowA basic user account is enough.
User interaction
NoneNo action by a victim is required.
Confidentiality (vulnerable system)
HighSerious loss of confidentiality on the vulnerable system.
Integrity (vulnerable system)
HighSerious loss of integrity on the vulnerable system.
Availability (vulnerable system)
HighSerious loss of availability on the vulnerable system.
Confidentiality (other systems)
NoneNo loss of confidentiality on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Integrity (other systems)
NoneNo loss of integrity on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Availability (other systems)
NoneNo loss of availability on systems beyond the vulnerable one.

Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/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. Scored by CNA (flexerasoftware.com).

Official description

Potential privilege escalation vulnerability in Revenera InstallShield versions 2022 R2 and 2021 R2 due to adding InstallScript custom action to a Basic MSI or InstallScript MSI project extracting few binaries to a predefined writable folder during installation time. The standard user account has write access to these files and folders, hence replacing them during installation time can lead to a DLL hijacking vulnerability.

Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.

The underlying weakness: Files or Directories Accessible to External Parties

The product makes files or directories accessible to unauthorized actors, even though they should not be.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • When storing data in the cloud (e.g., S3 buckets, Azure blobs, Google Cloud Storage, etc.), use the provider's controls to disable public access.

More Files or Directories Accessible to External Parties vulnerabilities (CWE-552)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Other vulnerabilities in InstallShield

All InstallShield vulnerabilities

Recent Files or Directories Accessible to External Parties vulnerabilities

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