# CVE-2019-16913: Privilege escalation in n/a

> Weak default folder permissions allow local attackers to replace the service binary and escalate privileges to SYSTEM.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/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:** 7 Oct 2019
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-4v8h-848g-f6xh

## What is CVE-2019-16913?

CVE-2019-16913 is a high-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 7 Oct 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

PC Protect Antivirus v4.14.31 installs by default to %PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\PCProtect with very weak folder permissions, granting any user full permission "Everyone: (F)" to the contents of the directory and its subfolders. In addition, the program installs a service called SecurityService that runs as LocalSystem. This allows any user to escalate privileges to "NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM" by substituting the service's binary with a Trojan horse.

Weakness: CWE-276 (Incorrect Default Permissions)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-16913?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Pcprotect Antivirus.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-16913?

No fix has been published for CVE-2019-16913 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2019-16913 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-16913 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2018-17776](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-17776/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 7.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-16913 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-16913 is a high-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 7 Oct 2019. 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-2019-16913 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. 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-2019-16913/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-16913/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-16913
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-16913
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-16913

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-16913/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.