# CVE-2018-4873: Privilege escalation in Creative Cloud Desktop Application 4.4.1.298 and earlier versions

> Local attackers can escalate privileges via an unquoted search path vulnerability in the Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop Application.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 19 May 2018
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-x8qr-mc64-66wh

## What is CVE-2018-4873?

CVE-2018-4873 is a high-severity vulnerability in Creative Cloud Desktop Application 4.4.1.298 and earlier versions, published on 19 May 2018. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop Application versions 4.4.1.298 and earlier have an exploitable Unquoted Search Path vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to local privilege escalation.

Weakness: CWE-428 (Unquoted Search Path or Element)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-4873?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Adobe Creative Cloud.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-4873?

No fix has been published for CVE-2018-4873 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2018-4873 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-4873 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Creative Cloud Desktop Application 4.4.1.298 and earlier versions

- [CVE-2020-9669](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-9669/): Privilege escalation in Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop Application (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-8236](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-8236/): Privilege escalation in Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop application (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-7958](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-7958/): Privilege escalation in Creative Cloud Desktop Application (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-7959](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-7959/): Supply chain in Creative Cloud Desktop Application (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2018-12829](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-12829/): Security feature bypass in Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop Application before 4.6.1 (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-4873 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-4873 is a high-severity vulnerability in Creative Cloud Desktop Application 4.4.1.298 and earlier versions, published on 19 May 2018. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-4873 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Creative Cloud Desktop Application 4.4.1.298 and earlier versions. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-4873/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-4873/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-4873
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-4873
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-4873

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-4873/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.