{"id":"CVE-2020-0683","kind":"vulnerability","aliases":["CVE-2020-0683"],"related":[],"title":"Microsoft Windows: Microsoft Windows Installer Privilege Escalation Vulnerability","description":"Microsoft Windows Installer contains a privilege escalation vulnerability when MSI packages process symbolic links, which allows attackers to bypass access restrictions to add or remove files.\n\nCISA required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.","summary":"Windows Installer mishandles symbolic links when processing MSI packages, letting a local user bypass access restrictions to add or remove files. An attacker with a low-privilege account can use this to escalate privileges on the machine.","severity":"high","cvss":7.8,"epss":0.07605,"exploited":true,"exploited_at":"2021-11-03T00:00:00+00:00","products":[{"name":"Microsoft Windows","fixed":[],"affected":"","ecosystem":"vendor"}],"ecosystems":["vendor"],"tags":["exploited","infrastructure","windows","windows-installer"],"not_affected_if":["fully-patched-windows"],"how_to_check":null,"fix":"Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2020-0683 per vendor instructions; the sources do not name the patched build.","status":"open","published_at":"2020-02-11T22:15:15+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:53+00:00","triaged_at":"2026-10-23T21:39:43+00:00","updated_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:35+00:00","category":"infrastructure","confidence":0.7,"triage":{"at":"2026-10-23T21:39:43Z","model":"claude-haiku-5-5","output":{"fix":"Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2020-0683 per vendor instructions; the sources do not name the patched build.","reach":"local","impact":"high","summary":"Windows Installer mishandles symbolic links when processing MSI packages, letting a local user bypass access restrictions to add or remove files. An attacker with a low-privilege account can use this to escalate privileges on the machine.","category":"infrastructure","who_cares":["windows","windows-installer"],"confidence":0.7,"needs_auth":"yes","worst_case":"Low-privilege local user gains higher privileges on the Windows machine","analyst_note":"Find the Microsoft advisory for CVE-2020-0683 to confirm patched builds and a registry or file check for exposure.","how_to_check":"unknown","needs_analyst":true,"not_affected_if":["fully-patched-windows"],"user_interaction":"unknown","needs_special_setup":"no","severity_if_unknown":"high"},"cost_usd":0.000452,"input_tokens":2841,"output_tokens":336,"severity_before":"unknown"},"analyst_status":"queued","analyst_note":"Find the Microsoft advisory for CVE-2020-0683 to confirm patched builds and a registry or file check for exposure.","search":"'-0683':11A,14A '-2020':10A,13A 'access':37B,80C 'account':51B 'action':89C 'add':40B,83C 'allow':76C 'appli':90C 'attack':45B,77C 'bypass':36B,79C 'cisa':87C 'contain':64C 'cve':9A,12A 'escal':7A,56B,67C 'exploit':17B 'file':43B,86C 'infrastructur':18B 'instal':5A,22B,24B,63C 'instruct':94C 'let':32B 'link':27B,74C 'local':34B 'low':49B 'low-privileg':48B 'machin':60B 'microsoft':1A,3A,15A,61C 'mishandl':25B 'msi':30B,70C 'packag':31B,71C 'per':92C 'privileg':6A,50B,57B,66C 'process':29B,72C 'remov':42B,85C 'requir':88C 'restrict':38B,81C 'symbol':26B,73C 'updat':91C 'use':53B 'user':35B 'vendor':93C 'vulner':8A,68C 'window':2A,4A,19B,21B,23B,62C 'windows':16A 'windows-instal':20B","nicknames":[],"mitigations":[],"who_affected":null,"tier":null,"verified":{},"analyst_revisit_at":null,"first_public_at":"2020-02-11T22:15:15+00:00","kev":{"dateAdded":"2021-11-03","dueDate":"2022-05-03","requiredAction":"Apply updates per vendor instructions.","knownRansomwareCampaignUse":"Unknown"},"cvss_vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","cvss_by":"nvd@nist.gov","poc_count":0,"sources":[{"source":"kev","external_id":"CVE-2020-0683","url":"https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?search_api_fulltext=CVE-2020-0683","severity":null,"published_at":"2021-11-03T00:00:00+00:00","modified_at":null,"first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:53+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-25T20:35:38+00:00","note":null},{"source":"epss","external_id":"CVE-2020-0683","url":"https://api.first.org/data/v1/epss?cve=CVE-2020-0683","severity":null,"published_at":null,"modified_at":null,"first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:13:44+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-23T19:13:44+00:00","note":null},{"source":"nvd","external_id":"CVE-2020-0683","url":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-0683","severity":null,"published_at":"2020-02-11T22:15:15+00:00","modified_at":"2026-06-17T02:46:20+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:35+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:35+00:00","note":null}],"documents":[],"notice":"Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai"}