CVE-2020-0787
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 r2
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HSummary
CVE-2020-0787 is a high-severity Link Following (CWE-59) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Server 2008. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Path Interception (T1034); ranked in the top 1% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in the Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) when it improperly handles symbolic links. The flaw is tracked as CVE-2020-0787 and carries a CVSS 3.1 score of 7.8; it is also associated with CWE-59. The affected component is the BITS service present in supported Windows releases.
A local attacker without prior privileges can exploit the issue by supplying a malicious symbolic link that BITS follows during transfer operations. Successful exploitation, which requires user interaction, grants the attacker full control over the affected system, allowing arbitrary code execution with elevated rights.
Microsoft published an advisory detailing patches for the vulnerability, and the flaw appears in CISA's catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities, confirming observed in-the-wild attacks. Public exploit code demonstrating the privilege-escalation path has also been released.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2020-2274
Vulnerability Data
An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) improperly handles symbolic links, aka 'Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability'.
- CWE(s)
- KEV Date Added
- 28 January 2022
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V15.4.2
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure SDLC practices directly require code to validate paths and avoid unsafe link following.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Security testing can detect link-following flaws before release.
Secure SDLC practices can mandate link-resolution checks and canonicalization before file access.
Application security requirements can explicitly require safe handling of symbolic links and path traversal.
Secure architecture principles include input validation and safe file-access design patterns.
Secure coding standards directly address canonicalization and symlink attacks during implementation.
Access-control rules can limit which files are reachable, reducing exposure to malicious links.