# CVE-2020-18171: Privilege escalation in n/a

> Attackers may escalate privileges via crafted OLE files in TechSmith Snagit, though the vulnerability's validity is disputed.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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:** 26 Jul 2021
- **Updated:** 10 Jun 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-3rh8-vm3g-5r4x

## What is CVE-2020-18171?

CVE-2020-18171 is a high-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 26 Jul 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

TechSmith Snagit 19.1.0.2653 uses Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) which can allow attackers to obfuscate and embed crafted files used to escalate privileges. NOTE: This implies that Snagit's use of OLE is a security vulnerability unto itself and it is not. See reference document for more details.

Weakness: CWE-269 (Improper Privilege Management)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-18171?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Techsmith Snagit.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-18171?

No fix has been published for CVE-2020-18171 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2020-18171 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-18171 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2010-3130](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-3130/): Path traversal in n/a (critical 9.3)
- [CVE-2020-18169](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-18169/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2019-13382](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-13382/): Path traversal in n/a (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2020-11541](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11541/): XML external entity in n/a (medium 5.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-18171 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-18171 is a high-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 26 Jul 2021. 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-2020-18171 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-2020-18171/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-18171/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-18171
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-18171
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-18171

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-18171/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.