HP Image Assistant: Race Condition Enabling Link Following
CVE-2025-13492 is a high-severity race condition enabling link following vulnerability in HP Image Assistant from HP, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.0 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 version 5.3.3 as the first without the flaw, so updating HP Image Assistant to that release or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.09% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update HP Image Assistant to 5.3.3 or a later version.
- Update Image Assistant to 5.3.3 or a later version.
- Read the advisory on support.hp.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| HP | HP Image Assistant | before 5.3.3 | 5.3.3 |
| HP | Image Assistant | before 5.3.3 | 5.3.3 |
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
- HighSuccess depends on conditions outside the attacker's control.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 5.4 | Medium | CNA (hp.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.0 | High | NVD |
Official description
A potential security vulnerability has been identified in HP Image Assistant for versions prior to 5.3.3. The vulnerability could potentially allow a local attacker to escalate privileges via a race condition when installing packages.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Race Condition Enabling Link Following
The product checks the status of a file or directory before accessing it, which produces a race condition in which the file can be replaced with a link before the access is performed, causing the product to access the wrong file.
More Race Condition Enabling Link Following vulnerabilities (CWE-363)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
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