CVE-2023-41179
RCE in Trendmicro Apex One 2019
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2023-41179 is a high-severity Code Injection (CWE-94) vulnerability in Trendmicro Apex One. Its CVSS base score is 7.2 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Junk Data (T1001.001); ranked in the top 9% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
A vulnerability exists in the third-party antivirus uninstaller module included in Trend Micro Apex One (both on-premises and SaaS editions), Worry-Free Business Security, and Worry-Free Business Security Services. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2023-41179 and assigned CWE-94, permits an attacker to manipulate the module and thereby execute arbitrary commands on the affected system. The issue received a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.2.
Exploitation requires an attacker to first obtain administrative console access on the target installation. With that access, the attacker can leverage the uninstaller module to run commands with the privileges of the affected Trend Micro component, resulting in full control over confidentiality, integrity, and availability on the host.
Vendor advisories and solution documents published by Trend Micro and coordinated through JVN describe remediation steps and updated packages for the impacted products; the primary references are available at the listed Trend Micro success-center URLs and the JVN vulnerability note.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-45696
Vulnerability Data
A vulnerability in the 3rd party AV uninstaller module contained in Trend Micro Apex One (on-prem and SaaS), Worry-Free Business Security and Worry-Free Business Security Services could allow an attacker to manipulate the module to execute arbitrary commands on an…
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affected installation. Note that an attacker must first obtain administrative console access on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability.
- CWE(s)
- KEV Date Added
- 21 September 2023
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V1.3.1
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Makes persistent code injection into loaded programs impossible when the executable image itself resides on hardware-protected read-only media.
Dynamically generated code can be produced and executed inside the isolated chamber, preventing host compromise from code-injection payloads.
Validates inputs used in dynamic code generation to block injected directives.
Directly prevents execution of attacker-supplied code written into data memory regions.
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's SDLC practices directly target injection flaws via secure coding and testing (mostly), yet as a single broad outcome it leaves many code-generation specifics unaddressed (partial).
PR.DS-10 protects runtime data confidentiality/integrity but has no bearing on neutralizing externally influenced input during code generation, so neither direction shows any preventive effect.
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.