CVE-2021-47886
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2021-47886 is an unquoted service path vulnerability in Pingzapper 2.3.1 that allows local attackers to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. Attackers can place malicious executables in the service path to hijack execution when the service starts. This affects systems running vulnerable Pingzapper versions with local access.
💻 Affected Systems
- Pingzapper
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Local privilege escalation to SYSTEM/administrator level, enabling full system compromise, persistence, and lateral movement.
Likely Case
Local attackers gain elevated privileges to install malware, steal credentials, or modify system configurations.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper endpoint protection, least privilege enforcement, and service hardening.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploit requires local access and ability to write to C:\Program Files (x86)\ directory. Proof-of-concept available on Exploit-DB.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Unknown
Vendor Advisory: Not available
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Check vendor website for updated version. 2. Uninstall vulnerable Pingzapper 2.3.1. 3. Install patched version if available. 4. Restart system to ensure service changes take effect.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Quote Service Path
windowsManually modify the service path to include quotes around the executable path
sc config PingzapperSvc binPath= "\"C:\Program Files (x86)\Pingzapper\PZService.exe\""
Restrict Directory Permissions
windowsRemove write permissions from C:\Program Files (x86)\Pingzapper\ directory for non-administrative users
icacls "C:\Program Files (x86)\Pingzapper" /deny Users:(OI)(CI)W
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Remove Pingzapper if not required for business operations
- Implement strict endpoint detection and response (EDR) to monitor for privilege escalation attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if Pingzapper 2.3.1 is installed and examine service configuration: sc qc PingzapperSvc | findstr BINARY_PATH_NAMECheck Version:
Check Pingzapper version in Control Panel > Programs and Features or via registry: reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall" /s | findstr /i pingzapperVerify Fix Applied:
Verify service path is quoted: sc qc PingzapperSvc should show path surrounded by quotes📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Windows Event Log 4688 (process creation) showing unexpected executables from Pingzapper directory
- Service Control Manager logs showing PingzapperSvc starting from unusual paths
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from system processes following service restart
SIEM Query:
source="WinEventLog:Security" EventCode=4688 AND (NewProcessName="*\\Pingzapper\\*" OR ParentProcessName="*\\Pingzapper\\*")