CVE-2020-3950

Q: How do I fix CVE-2020-3950?

Published advisories record a fix for 3 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.

Q: Is CVE-2020-3950 being actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2020-3950 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation has been observed in the wild. US federal agencies were required to remediate it by 2022-05-03. Treat it as a priority whatever its CVSS score says.

Q: How severe is CVE-2020-3950?

CVE-2020-3950 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.8, rated high. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.

Q: What does CVE-2020-3950 affect?

Published advisories record a fix for fusion (NVD), horizon client (NVD), remote console (NVD). Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.

HIGHCISA KEVEPSS 94th pctl

7.8

CVSS v3

NVD

Description

VMware Fusion (11.x before 11.5.2), VMware Remote Console for Mac (11.x and prior before 11.0.1) and Horizon Client for Mac (5.x and prior before 5.4.0) contain a privilege escalation vulnerability due to improper use of setuid binaries. Successful exploitation of this issue may allow attackers with normal user privileges to escalate their privileges to root on the system where Fusion, VMRC or Horizon Client is installed.

CWE-269Improper Privilege Management

How to fix

Remediation Available

fusionNVD

Affected:>= 11.0.0, < 11.5.2Fixed in:11.5.2CVE-2020-3950derived from NVD

horizon clientNVD

Affected:>= 5.0.0, < 5.4.0Fixed in:5.4.0CVE-2020-3950derived from NVD

remote consoleNVD

Affected:>= 11.0.0, < 11.0.1Fixed in:11.0.1CVE-2020-3950derived from NVD

TridentStack Control can deploy fixes like this automatically across your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet. See how it works

Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.

CVSS v3 Vector

Exploitability

Attack VectorLocal

Attack ComplexityLow

Privileges RequiredLow

User InteractionNone

ScopeUnchanged

Impact

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityHigh

AvailabilityHigh

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Exploit Intelligence

7.25%probability of exploitation in 30 days

94thpercentile

High risk: more likely to be exploited than 94% of all known CVEs.

Known Exploited Vulnerability (CISA KEV)

VMware Multiple Products Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

VMware Fusion, Remote Console (VMRC) for Mac, and Horizon Client for Mac contain a privilege escalation vulnerability due to improper use of setuid binaries that allows attackers to escalate privileges to root.

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Remediation due: 2022-05-03

References

Exploit2

Vendor Advisory1

vmware.com

Government Resource1

cisa.gov

Related Vulnerabilities

Other CWE-269 (Improper Privilege Management) vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all

CVE	Severity	CVSS	EPSS	Exploited	Fix
CVE-2017-12635	Critical	9.8	100%	-	Fix
CVE-2022-24637	Critical	9.8	99%	-	Fix
CVE-2017-5689	Critical	9.8	92%	KEV	Fix
CVE-2020-3243	Critical	9.8	88%	-	-
CVE-2024-21888	High	8.8	87%	-	-
CVE-2022-0441	Critical	9.8	85%	-	Fix

Common questions

How do I fix CVE-2020-3950?

Published advisories record a fix for 3 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.

Is CVE-2020-3950 being actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2020-3950 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation has been observed in the wild. US federal agencies were required to remediate it by 2022-05-03. Treat it as a priority whatever its CVSS score says.

How severe is CVE-2020-3950?

CVE-2020-3950 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.8, rated high. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.

What does CVE-2020-3950 affect?

Published advisories record a fix for fusion (NVD), horizon client (NVD), remote console (NVD). Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.

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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2025-10-30.