Local Privilege Escalation present only on the Windows version of PyInstaller
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Privilege escalation
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and GitHub. Impact type from CWE-250.
Summary
In PyInstaller before version 3.6, only on Windows, a local privilege escalation vulnerability is present in this particular case: If a software using PyInstaller in "onefile" mode is launched by a privileged user (at least more than the current one) which have his "TempPath" resolving to a world writable directory. This is the case for example if the software is launched as a service or as a scheduled task using a system account (TempPath will be C:\Windows\Temp). In order to be exploitable the software has to be (re)started after the attacker launch the exploit program, so for a service launched at startup, a service restart is needed (e.g. after a crash or an upgrade).
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| pyinstaller | PyInstaller | before 3.6 | 3.6 | Patch available | CNA |
| — | PyInstaller (PyPI) | before 3.6 | 3.6 | Patch available | GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r |
- PyInstaller Vendorpyinstaller Affected before 3.6 Fixed in 3.6 Patch available CNA
- PyInstaller (PyPI) Vendor— Affected before 3.6 Fixed in 3.6 Patch available GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r
CPE configurations NVD · 2
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:pyinstaller:pyinstaller:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 3.6 | Vulnerable | pyinstaller |
| cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | not specified by NVD | Running on | Microsoft |
- cpe:2.3:a:pyinstaller:pyinstaller:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 3.6 Vulnerable ·pyinstaller
- cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions not specified by NVD Running on ·Microsoft
Remediation
- Fix · CNA PyInstaller (PyInstaller) Fixed in 3.6
- Fix · GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r PyInstaller (PyPI) Fixed in 3.6 Advisory →
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2019-16784
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r
References
Other 4
- https://github.com/pyinstaller/pyinstaller/commit/42a67148b3bdf9211fda8499fdc5b63acdd7e6cc
- https://github.com/pyinstaller/pyinstaller/commit/be948cf0954707671aa499da17b10c86b6fa5e5c
- https://github.com/pyinstaller/pyinstaller
- https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/pyinstaller/PYSEC-2020-175.yaml
More Pyinstaller vulnerabilities
- TI-2023-27204 Local Privilege Escalation in pyinstaller on Windows CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
Sources
- CVE-2019-16784 · CVE Program
- CVE-2019-16784 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
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