CVE-2025-41244
HIGHCISA KEVEPSS 95th pctlDescription
VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a local privilege escalation vulnerability. A malicious local actor with non-administrative privileges having access to a VM with VMware Tools installed and managed by Aria Operations with SDMP enabled may exploit this vulnerability to escalate privileges to root on the same VM.
How to fix
This vulnerability affects an unusually large number of packages. The highest-confidence fixes are shown above; the full list is longer. Check the referenced advisories for complete coverage.
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
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploit Intelligence
High risk: more likely to be exploited than 95% of all known CVEs.
Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools Privilege Defined with Unsafe Actions Vulnerability
Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a privilege defined with unsafe actions vulnerability. A malicious local actor with non-administrative privileges having access to a VM with VMware Tools installed and managed by Aria Operations with SDMP enabled may exploit this vulnerability to escalate privileges to root on the same VM.
Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
Remediation due: 2025-11-20
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-267 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2025-47811 | Medium | 4.1 | 4.8% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2024-42365 | High | 7.4 | 4.7% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2020-29396 | High | 8.8 | 3.2% | - | - |
| CVE-2019-10169 | Medium | 6.6 | 1.3% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2019-10170 | Medium | 6.6 | 1.2% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2021-32739 | High | 8.8 | 1.1% | - | Fix |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2025-41244?
Published advisories record a fix for 33 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-2025-41244 being actively exploited?
Yes. CVE-2025-41244 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 2025-11-20. Treat it as a priority whatever its CVSS score says.
How severe is CVE-2025-41244?
CVE-2025-41244 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-2025-41244 affect?
Published advisories record a fix for open-vm-tools (Amazon), open-vm-tools-debuginfo (Amazon), open-vm-tools-debugsource (Amazon), open-vm-tools-desktop (Amazon), and 29 more. 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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Markdown
[](https://tridentstack.com/cve/CVE-2025-41244)HTML
<a href="https://tridentstack.com/cve/CVE-2025-41244"><img src="https://tridentstack.com/cve/badge/CVE-2025-41244.svg" alt="CVE-2025-41244"></a>This vulnerability is actively exploited in the wild
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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 2026-06-17.