High-Severity Vulnerability in VMware Tools Allows Privilege Escalation
A newly discovered high-severity vulnerability (CVE-2025-22230) in VMware Tools for Windows could allow attackers with limited access inside a virtual machine (VM) to escalate their privileges and execute high-privilege operations. Affecting VMware Tools versions 11.x.x and 12.x.x, this flaw has been assigned a CVSSv3 score of 7.8, indicating a significant security risk. Broadcom has released VMware Tools version 12.5.1 to address the issue, urging organizations to update immediately. With no available workarounds, delaying the patch could expose virtual environments to exploitation, potentially leading to system compromise, data breaches, and lateral movement across networks.
Technical Description
The vulnerability CVE-2025-22230 is a serious privilege escalation flaw found in VMware Tools for Windows, affecting versions 11.x.x and 12.x.x. This means an attacker who already has basic access inside a virtual machine (VM) can manipulate VMware Tools to gain higher privileges, potentially taking full control of the system. Since VMware Tools play a crucial role in managing and optimizing virtual machines, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to businesses and cloud environments relying on VMware infrastructure.
At its core, the issue stems from weak access controls in VMware Tools. Normally, the software should enforce strict separation between low-privileged users and administrative functions. However, due to this flaw, an attacker can trick VMware Tools into executing system-level operations on their behalf, bypassing built in security restrictions. This could allow them to run commands as an administrator, disable security protections, and even spread their attack to other virtual machines running on the same infrastructure.
Here’s how an attack might unfold:
- First, the attacker gets access to the VM: This could happen through phishing, stolen credentials, or by exploiting another vulnerability in the system. At this point, they only have low-level user privileges, meaning they shouldn’t be able to make significant changes.
- Next, they exploit VMware Tools: By taking advantage of the flawed access controls, the attacker manipulates VMware Tools to execute commands with elevated privileges. This can be done through code injection, service manipulation, or abusing system calls.
- Then comes privilege escalation: With administrative control over the VM, the attacker can modify critical settings, disable security tools, install malware, or create backdoors for future access.
- Finally, the attacker spreads further: If the compromised VM is part of a larger virtualized environment, the attacker may attempt to move laterally, targeting other VMs, the hypervisor, or even VMware management consoles to expand their control.
Impact
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IOC and Context Details
| Topics | Details |
|---|---|
| Tactic Name | Privilege Escalation |
| Technique Name | Exploitation for Privilege Escalation |
| Sub Technique Name | Abusing Weak Access Controls in Virtual Environments |
| Attack Type | Local Privilege Escalation (LPE) |
| Targeted Applications | VMware Tools for Windows (Versions 11.x.x and 12.x.x) |
| Region Impacted | Global |
| Industry Impacted | All |
| IOC’s | NA |
| CVE | CVE-2025-22230 |
Recommended Actions
It’s highly recommended to protect against CVE-2025-22230, organizations should:
- Update VMware Tools: Immediately upgrade to version 12.5.1, which patches the vulnerability.
- Limit user permissions: Apply least privilege principles to restrict unnecessary access inside VMs.
- Monitor VMware Tools activity: Keep an eye on logs for unexpected changes or privilege escalation attempts.
- Harden virtual machine security: Implement strong access controls and segment networks to prevent lateral movement in case of compromise.