CVE-2009-3281
The vmx86 kernel extension in VMware Fusion before 2.0.6 build 196839 does not use correct file permissions, which allows host OS users to…
- 7.2HighCVSS base score
- 0.93%Exploitation in 30 daysEPSS · top 39% of all CVEs
- NoKnown exploitednot in CISA's KEV catalog
- 1Public exploitsMetasploit, Nuclei and Exploit-DB
Description
The vmx86 kernel extension in VMware Fusion before 2.0.6 build 196839 does not use correct file permissions, which allows host OS users to gain privileges on the host OS via unspecified vectors.
Public exploit
An exploit or proof of concept is public: anyone can try it against an unpatched system. The public collections list an Exploit-DB entry for it.
Show the exploits1
Exploit-DB1 entry
- VMware Fusion 2.0.5 - vmx86 kext Kernel Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 10076local, osxpublished 2 Oct 2009Verified
Modules, templates and exploits as listed by the Metasploit Framework (BSD-3-Clause), ProjectDiscovery's Nuclei templates (MIT) and the Exploit Database (GPLv2), read once a day. Where the data comes from
Timeline
ID reserved
By mitre
- 25 days later
· 25 days later
Published
- 15 years later
· 15 years later
Record updated
Changes after publication (a new score, a public exploit, EPSS crossing 1, 10 or 50 %, leaving KEV) are kept since November 2026; earlier ones are not known.
Scores
| Scored by | CVSS | Score | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| NVDNVD · Modified | 2.0 | High7.2 | AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C |
- EPSS (exploitation in 30 days)
- 0.93% · top 39% of all CVEs (10 Nov 2026)
The list uses the assigner's score when there is one, then CISA's, then NVD's: High 7.2.
Affected products
n/a
- affected n/a
References
5
- [security-announce] 20091001 VMSA-2009-0013 VMware Fusion resolves two security issues (opens in a new tab)mailing-listx_refsource_MLISTx_transferred
- ADV-2009-2811 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_VUPENx_transferred
- http://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2009-0013.html (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRMx_transferred
- 36928 (opens in a new tab)third-party-advisoryx_refsource_SECUNIAx_transferred
- 1022981 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_SECTRACKx_transferred
Sources
The same CVE in the primary databases and aggregators, to check against.
- CVE.org record (opens in a new tab)
- CVE List JSON (GitHub) (opens in a new tab)
- NVD (opens in a new tab)
- FIRST EPSS (opens in a new tab)
- EUVD EUVD-2009-3264 (opens in a new tab)
- OSV.dev (opens in a new tab)
- GitHub Advisories (opens in a new tab)
- CIRCL Vulnerability-Lookup (opens in a new tab)
Badge for a README or a ticket
[](https://cveledger.app/cve/CVE-2009-3281)Record last updated .