Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-28065

Dell Alienware Update ≤ 4.9.0

Published
23 June 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 6.7
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0019 9th percentile
Risk Priority 47 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-28065 is a medium-severity Insecure Operation on Windows Junction / Mount Point (CWE-1386) vulnerability in Dell Alienware Update. Its CVSS base score is 6.7 (Medium).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Path Interception (T1034); ranked at the 9th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A01:2025 Broken Access Control

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Dell Command | Update, Dell Update, and Alienware Update versions 4.8.0 and prior contain an Insecure Operation on Windows Junction / Mount Point vulnerability. A local malicious user could potentially exploit this vulnerability leading to privilege escalation.

CWE(s)
CWE-1386CWE-59

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1034 Path Interception Persistence
**This technique has been deprecated.
attack.mitre.org →
T1006 Direct Volume Access Stealth
Adversaries may directly access a volume to bypass file access controls and file system monitoring.
attack.mitre.org →
T1547.009 Shortcut Modification Persistence
Adversaries may create or modify shortcuts that can execute a program during system boot or user login.
attack.mitre.org →
T1548 Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may circumvent mechanisms designed to control privilege elevation to gain higher-level permissions.
attack.mitre.org →
T1552 Unsecured Credentials Credential Access
Adversaries may search compromised systems to find and obtain insecurely stored credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-28071Same product: Dell Alienware Update
CVE-2023-23698Same product: Dell Alienware Update
CVE-2023-32454Same vendor: Dell
CVE-2023-24572Same vendor: Dell
CVE-2023-23697Same vendor: Dell
CVE-2023-32474Same vendor: Dell
CVE-2023-39246Same product: Microsoft Windows
CVE-2023-5834Shared CWE-1386, CWE-59
CVE-2024-52537Same product: Microsoft Windows
CVE-2023-32470Same vendor: Dell

Affected Assets

dell
alienware update
≤ 4.9.0
dell
command update
≤ 4.9.0
dell
update
≤ 4.9.0

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.3.3
  • 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.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly prevent improper junction/mount-point handling during design and coding.

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.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing can detect junction/mount-point weaknesses before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development lifecycle can mandate junction/mount-point validation during design and coding.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements can explicitly require protection against Windows reparse-point attacks.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure system architecture principles include canonicalization and path-traversal defenses that mitigate junction attacks.

A.8.28 Secure coding partial match
prevents

Secure coding standards directly address safe file/directory handling to prevent insecure junction operations.

A.8.3 Information access restriction none match
mitigates

Information access restriction reduces exposure but does not prevent the technical flaw itself.

References