Description

Dell PowerPath, version 7.2 through to 8.0 SP1, contains an Improper Privilege Management vulnerability. A low privileged attacker with local access could potentially exploit this vulnerability, leading to Elevation of privileges.

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "5.3",
  "pubDate": "2026-08-19T15:17:01.270Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-08-19T15:17:01.270Z",
  "executiveSummary": "Dell PowerPath, spanning versions 7.2 through to 8.0 SP1, is susceptible to an Improper Privilege Management vulnerability that poses significant security risks to host environments. This flaw allows a threat actor operating with low-privileged, local access to successfully execute an elevation of privileges attack, potentially compromising the integrity and confidentiality of the underlying operating system. The vulnerability stems from inadequate access controls or improper handling of administrative privileges within the application logic or associated helper binaries. Exploitation requires the attacker to have pre-existing local access to the target host, limiting remote attack vectors but significantly amplifying the threat profile if a multi-user environment or compromised lower-tier account is present. Successful exploitation grants the adversary elevated privileges, enabling the execution of privileged commands, unauthorized access to sensitive system resources, or tampering with critical multipath storage management configurations. Organizations utilizing the affected Dell PowerPath versions face heightened risks of internal system compromise, necessitating immediate remediation or adherence to vendor-supplied hardening guidelines to thwart localized privilege abuse.",
  "technicalDetails": "The identified vulnerability in Dell PowerPath versions 7.2 through to 8.0 SP1 is classified as an Improper Privilege Management issue, occurring when an application fails to properly restrict access to privileged functionality or sensitive resources, allowing lower-privileged users to execute actions reserved for administrators. The root cause lies in the authorization checks or file/process permission configurations governing specific components of the Dell PowerPath software suite. Specifically, local processes, services, or setuid/privileged helper mechanisms may improperly handle execution contexts, inter-process communication, or file system modifications without sufficiently validating the initiator's privilege level. The attack flow begins with a local attacker establishing standard user-level execution capabilities on the host system where Dell PowerPath is installed. Lacking direct administrative rights, the attacker identifies and interacts with the vulnerable Dell PowerPath component, interface, or local endpoint that lacks robust access validation. By supplying maliciously crafted inputs, exploiting race conditions, or leveraging insecurely configured IPC channels, the attacker forces the vulnerable component to execute arbitrary commands, spawn privileged processes, or modify restricted system files on their behalf. Given that the vulnerable component operates with elevated security contexts, the interaction bypasses standard operating system authorization boundaries. Consequently, the payload behavior results in a successful elevation of privileges, granting the local user administrative or root-level control over the affected system. The authentication requirement for this attack is minimal, as the adversary only needs valid local credentials to interact with the system interface. Network exposure is non-existent or negligible, as the attack vector strictly requires local access rather than network-based ingress. Post-exploitation impact includes complete system compromise, persistence installation, unauthorized access to storage subsystems managed by Dell PowerPath, and the ability to disable further security auditing or monitoring mechanisms on the host."
}