# CVE-2020-8508: Privilege escalation in n/a

> A local attacker can exploit a kernel driver vulnerability in Norman Malware Cleaner to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 3 Feb 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-5cgc-6xhj-2rwc

## What is CVE-2020-8508?

CVE-2020-8508 is a critical vulnerability in n/a, published on 3 Feb 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

nsak64.sys in Norman Malware Cleaner 2.08.08 allows users to call arbitrary kernel functions because the passing of function pointers between user and kernel mode is mishandled.

Weakness: CWE-787 (Out-of-bounds Write)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-8508?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Norman Malware Cleaner.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-8508?

No fix has been published for CVE-2020-8508 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2020-8508 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-8508 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-8508 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-8508 is a critical vulnerability in n/a, published on 3 Feb 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-8508 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-2020-8508/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-8508/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-8508
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-8508
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-8508

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-8508/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.