Summary
A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in Phoenix Contact Device and Update Management prior to version 2025.3.1 due to misconfigured permissions on nssm.exe in the DAUM-WINDOWS-SERVICE. This misconfiguration allows a low-privileged local user to execute arbitrary code with administrative privileges.
Details
Impact
The products installer allows privileges escalation to admin rights caused by the nssm.exe. Nssm.exe is an open-source tool designed to simplify the management of Windows services.
The permissions on the nssm.exe were not secured properly, this could allow an attack to escalate privileges from a low privileged user to an administrator.
Remediation
Update to the latest 2025.3.1 DaUM Version.
Vulnerabilities 1
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High 7.8
Improper File Permissions Allow Local Privilege Escalation
A low-privileged local attacker can exploit improper permissions on nssm.exe to escalate their privileges and gain administrative access.
Revision history
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#1
Initial
References
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PCSA-2025/00010
https://phoenixcontact.com/psirt
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Phoenix Contact advisory overview at CERT@VDE
https://certvde.com/de/advisories/vendor/phoenixcontact/
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Phoenix Contact application note
https://dam-mdc.phoenixcontact.com/asset/156443151564/0a870ae433c19148b80bd760f3a1c1f2/107913_en_03.pdf
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VDE-2025-063: Phoenix Contact: Device and Update Management Windows Installer Privilege Escalation - HTML
https://certvde.com/en/advisories/VDE-2025-063