CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-54424NVD status: Awaiting Analysis

Parsec: Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-54424 is a high-severity incorrect use of privileged apis vulnerability in Parsec from Unity, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.4 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. Affected Parsec versions: v2026-05-04.0 and earlier. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.18% 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. Check which version of Parsec you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
UnityParsecv2026-05-04.0 and earlierNot stated

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.
Privileges required
NoneNo account or login is needed.
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:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by CNA (mitre.org).

Official description

An Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs vulnerability in Unity Parsec on Windows hosts leads to a potential Elevation of Privilege. This issue affects Parsec through v2026-05-04.0. The patched version is Parsec for Windows version 150-104a. A user can generate a situation where there is an instance of parsecd.exe running as NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM with a user-controlled value of the AppData environment variable.

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

The underlying weakness: Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs

The product does not conform to the API requirements for a function call that requires extra privileges. This could allow attackers to gain privileges by causing the function to be called incorrectly.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Before calling privileged APIs, always ensure that the assumptions made by the privileged code hold true prior to making the call.
  • Know architecture and implementation weaknesses of the privileged APIs and make sure to account for these weaknesses before calling the privileged APIs to ensure that they can be called safely.
  • If privileged APIs make certain assumptions about data, context or state validity that are passed by the caller, the calling code must ensure that these assumptions have been validated prior to making the call.

More Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs vulnerabilities (CWE-648)

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 Parsec

All Parsec vulnerabilities

Recent Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs vulnerabilities

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