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Vulnerabilities/CVE-2023-20867Public Intelligence Dossier
Source: vmware · Limited verification•Last verified: •Collection Healthy
CVE-2023-20867ListedLOW (raw)CVSS 3.9CWE-287

A fully compromised ESXi host can force VMware Tools to fail to authenticate host-to-guest operations, impacting the confidentiality and integrity of the guest virtual machine.

Published: 13 Jun 2023•Last updated: 17 Jun 2026, 11:01 AM IST•Source identifier: security@vmware.com
Dossier completeness: source-provided sections 3 / 3 · rule guidance available. Missing source facts count as incomplete.
Official source
CISA KEV catalog
Listed
Added23 Jun 2023
Due14 Jul 2023
RansomwareUnknown
CVSS score
3.9LOW (raw)
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Metric sourcesecurity@vmware.com
EPSS probability
13.6%0.136
Percentile96th
Weakness type
CWE-287
NVD-CWE-noinfo
Remediation
Patch status unknown
No fixed version or KB recorded

Why It Matters

Analysis dossier

Why It Matters

A fully compromised ESXi host can force VMware Tools to fail to authenticate host-to-guest operations, impacting the confidentiality and integrity of the guest virtual machine.

SOC priority

Immediate Attention

Actively exploited (source statement)

Yes

Publicly disclosed

Unknown

Risk basis: CISA KEV exploitation signal; SOC ecosystem technology relevance; Source-confirmed exploitation or CISA KEV/ransomware metadata

Affected Products & Remediation

3 source-backed products
Affected products and versions (source)
  • vmware tools · >= 10.3.0 < 12.2.5 · NVD CPE · Source
  • debian debian linux · 10.0; 11.0; 12.0 · NVD CPE · Source
  • fedoraproject fedora · 37; 38; 39 · NVD CPE · Source
Recorded patch / KBNot provided by source

Vendor or catalog guidance (source)

  • CISA KEV: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Known exploitation (source facts)

Only what a source states. Unknown means no source has said either way; it is not "not exploited".

CISA KEV
Listed
Exploited (source statement)
Yes
Publicly disclosed (source)
Unknown

CISA required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Suggested hunting (rule-based inference)

SecOps Signal recommendation (rule-based inference). These steps are hunting hypotheses from the vulnerability class; they do not state or imply that exploitation occurred here or anywhere.

Matched authentication-weakness (CWE-287)

Exposure

  1. Identify affected authentication surfaces and compare versions with the advisory.Telemetry: Application inventory · A CWE match is not proof of local exposure. · Rule authentication-weakness

Exploitation evidence

  1. Review unexpected successful sign-ins and changes to privileged accounts on affected systems.Telemetry: SigninLogs · Access anomalies are relevant to authentication weaknesses. · Rule authentication-weakness

Response

  1. Verify the vendor fix and review privileged access after remediation.Telemetry: Identity audit logs · Post-change review checks the response. · Rule authentication-weakness

CISA KEV Record

Catalog entry
23 Jun 2023
Required action due
14 Jul 2023
Known ransomware use
Unknown

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Change History & Source Data

— No recorded material change

CNA / source
security@vmware.com
Record status · verification
UPDATED · CISA KEV confirmed
CPE
cpe:2.3:a:vmware:tools:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:11.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:12.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:37:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:38:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:39:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

Evidence & Provenance

4 public sources
CISA KEV CatalogAdded 2023-06-23nvd.nist.govSource recordlists.debian.orgSource recordlists.fedoraproject.orgSource record

Linked by the query's stored exact CVE association. Review required tables and validation status before use.

Detection Hunting Query
Target: DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities•Defender XDR
Detect endpoints exposed to CVE-2023-20867
Purpose: Exposure assessment (Category: Exposure Check)Why linked: Query metadata names CVE-2023-20867
DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities| where CveId == "CVE-2023-20867"| project DeviceId, DeviceName, OSPlatform, OSVersion, SoftwareVendor, SoftwareName, SoftwareVersion, CveId, VulnerabilitySeverityLevel, RecommendedSecurityUpdate, RecommendedSecurityUpdateId| sort by VulnerabilitySeverityLevel desc
Schema Checked · Not runtime validatedSource: SecOps Signal deterministic template · Limited verificationStatic screening: Passed structure and schema checks; tenant execution is not verified.
Open KQL Library

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Correlated briefings

SecOps Signal surfaces public advisory facts only. A missing value means the source has not published it, not that your environment is unaffected. No tenant inventory is connected.