CVE-2019-16784 json
Local Privilege Escalation present only on the Windows version of PyInstaller
published 2020-01-14 6 y ago modified 2026-09-10 1 mo ago also GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r , PYSEC-2020-175 , EUVD-2020-0155
- cvss
- 7.0
- version 3.1, CNA
- cisa kev
- Not listed
- not in CISA's catalog
- epss
- 0.7%
- EPSS 0.7% chance of exploitation in 30 days, percentile 53%
- public exploits
- 0
- none known
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).
Patch / fix
- pypi pyinstaller 3.6
- pyinstaller pyinstaller 3.6
Exploit prediction
0.69% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 53% of all scored CVEs (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-08).
CVSS scores
| assigned by | version | score | vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| CNA | 3.1 | 7.0 | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| NVD | 3.1 | 7.8 | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| NVD | 2.0 | 4.4 | AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P |
| GitHub | 3.1 | 7.0 | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
Affected packages
| ecosystem | package | affected | fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| pypi | pyinstaller | <3.6 |
3.6 |
Affected products
- PyInstaller PyInstaller
Classification
References
-
github.com
/pyinstaller/pyinstaller/security/advisories/GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r
web, patch, third-party-advisory, advisory
-
github.com
/pyinstaller/pyinstaller/commit/42a67148b3bdf9211fda8499fdc5b63acdd7e6cc
web
-
github.com
/pyinstaller/pyinstaller/commit/be948cf0954707671aa499da17b10c86b6fa5e5c
web
-
nvd.nist.gov
/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-16784
advisory
-
github.com
/pyinstaller/pyinstaller
package
-
github.com
/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/pyinstaller/PYSEC-2020-175.yaml
web
Sources
- CVE List CVE-2019-16784
- GitHub Advisory GHSA-7fcj-pq9j-wh2r
- NVD CVE-2019-16784
- OSV PYSEC-2020-175
Fencer Vulns keeps one entry per vulnerability: the CVE id wins, then GHSA, and records that alias each other are merged, except that two CVEs always keep separate entries. The same data is available as JSON.