# CVE-2026-7169: Uncontrolled Search Path Element in Evope Collector

> A local attacker can escalate privileges to SYSTEM by placing a malicious DLL in a specific directory, exploiting an uncontrolled search path in Evope Collector.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 24 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 24 Sep 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-mfvg-gv48-78hw

## What is CVE-2026-7169?

CVE-2026-7169 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Evope Collector, published on 24 Sep 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

a vulnerability involving an unchecked search path element in Evope Collector, versions prior to 1.1.7.13, allows a local attacker without privileges to load a malicious DLL by placing a ‘wtsapi32.dll’ file in the ‘C:\ProgramData\Evope\’ directory. The ‘Evope.Service.exe’ component, which runs with ‘NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM’ privileges, loads this DLL without properly verifying its integrity or origin. Successful exploitation could allow code execution with SYSTEM privileges and result in local privilege escalation.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-7169?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-7169?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-7169 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-7169 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-7169 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-7169 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-7169 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Evope Collector, published on 24 Sep 2026. 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-2026-7169 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Evope Collector. 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-2026-7169/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-7169/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-7169
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-7169
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-7169

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-7169/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.