HIGH
CVE-2018-16098
CWE-428Published: January 24, 2019· Updated: Jun 17, 2026
7.8
CVSS v3.1
Official Description
In some Lenovo ThinkPads, an unquoted search path vulnerability was found in various versions of the Synaptics Pointing Device driver which could allow unauthorized code execution as a low privilege user.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2018-16098 requires local access, meaning attackers must already have a foothold on the target system.
Exploitation requires low privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.
A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 7.8.
CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown
Exploitability
Attack VectorLocal
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges Req.Low
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
Impact
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityHigh
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Affected Vendors & Products
Lenovo117 product(s)
synaptics thinkpad ultranav driverthinkpad helix firmwarethinkpad helixthiankpad l430 firmwarethiankpad l430thiankpad l530 firmwarethiankpad l530thiankpad p1 firmwarethiankpad p1thiankpad x1 extreme firmwarethiankpad x1 extremethiankpad p50s firmware+105
Microsoft3 product(s)
windows 7windows 8.1windows 10
Source: NVD CPE · 125 total CPE entries
Exploit & PoC Resources
NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
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GitHub PoC Search
Community PoC repositories
Rapid7 / Metasploit
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Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
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Official Patches & Advisories
All References (3)
→
https://support.lenovo.com/bg/en/product_security/len-24573Patch · Vendor Advisory
Quick Facts
CVE IDCVE-2018-16098
CVSS Score7.8 / 10
SeverityHIGH
WeaknessCWE-428
CISA KEVNo
Affected2 vendor(s)
PublishedJan 24, 2019
Related CVEs (CWE-428)
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2018-16098 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWATCH.COM. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.