CVE-2020-23740
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2020-23740 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in DriverGenius driver update software. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability to elevate privileges from a standard user account to SYSTEM/administrator level. This affects users of DriverGenius version 9.61.5480.28 on Windows systems.
💻 Affected Systems
- DriverGenius
📦 What is this software?
Drivergenius by Drivergenius
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise where attackers gain SYSTEM privileges, install persistent malware, steal credentials, and disable security controls.
Likely Case
Attackers gain administrative access to install additional malware, ransomware, or credential harvesting tools on the compromised system.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if users operate with standard privileges and have application control policies preventing unauthorized program execution.
🎯 Exploit Status
Proof-of-concept code is publicly available on GitHub. Exploitation requires local access but is straightforward once initial access is obtained.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Later versions of DriverGenius (check vendor for specific version)
Vendor Advisory: http://www.drivergenius.com/
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open DriverGenius. 2. Check for updates in settings. 3. Install latest version. 4. Restart computer. 5. Verify update completed successfully.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Remove DriverGenius
windowsUninstall vulnerable software completely
Control Panel > Programs > Uninstall a program > Select DriverGenius > Uninstall
Restrict execution
windowsUse application control to block DriverGenius execution
Using AppLocker or Windows Defender Application Control to create deny rules for DriverGenius executables
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Run DriverGenius with standard user privileges only, not administrator
- Implement strict endpoint detection and response (EDR) monitoring for privilege escalation attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check DriverGenius version: Open DriverGenius > Help > About. If version is 9.61.5480.28, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
wmic product where name="DriverGenius" get versionVerify Fix Applied:
After update, verify version is newer than 9.61.5480.28. Test with standard user account that privilege escalation is no longer possible.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Windows Event Logs showing privilege escalation attempts
- DriverGenius process spawning with SYSTEM privileges from user context
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections following local privilege escalation
SIEM Query:
EventID=4688 AND NewProcessName LIKE '%DriverGenius%' AND SubjectUserName!=SYSTEM AND TokenElevationType=%%1938