HIGH
CVE-2020-5837
CWE-59Published: May 11, 2020· Updated: Jun 17, 2026
7.8
CVSS v3.1
Official Description
Symantec Endpoint Protection, prior to 14.3, may not respect file permissions when writing to log files that are replaced by symbolic links, which can lead to a potential elevation of privilege.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2020-5837 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:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Affected Vendors & Products
symantec1 product(s)
endpoint protection
Source: NVD CPE · 1 total CPE entries
Exploit & PoC Resources
NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
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GitHub PoC Search
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Rapid7 / Metasploit
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PacketStorm
Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
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Official Patches & Advisories
All References (2)
Quick Facts
CVE IDCVE-2020-5837
CVSS Score7.8 / 10
SeverityHIGH
WeaknessCWE-59
CISA KEVNo
Affected1 vendor(s)
PublishedMay 11, 2020
Related CVEs (CWE-59)
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2020-5837 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.