Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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-2024-47856 is a critical-severity Relative Path Traversal (CWE-23) vulnerability in Rsa Authentication Agent For Windows. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 43th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and AC-3 (Access Enforcement) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2024-47856 is a path interception vulnerability (CWE-23) in RSA Authentication Agent for Microsoft Windows versions before 7.4.7. It arises when service paths and shortcut paths contain one or more spaces without surrounding quotation marks, allowing Windows to resolve an executable from a higher-level directory instead of the intended one. The issue carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating critical severity due to its potential for remote exploitation without privileges or user interaction.
An unauthenticated attacker with network access can exploit this vulnerability by placing a malicious executable in a higher-level directory along the unquoted path used by the affected service or shortcut. Upon execution of the service or shortcut, Windows prioritizes the attacker's executable, enabling arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the RSA Authentication Agent process, which could result in high-impact confidentiality, integrity, and availability violations, such as full system compromise.
RSA advisories, including RSA-2024-13, detail the security update and recommend upgrading to version 7.4.7, available for download from the RSA community site. Practitioners should apply this patch promptly to affected systems to prevent exploitation.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2024-55101
Vulnerability Data
In RSA Authentication Agent before 7.4.7, service paths and shortcut paths may be vulnerable to path interception if the path has one or more spaces and is not surrounded by quotation marks. An adversary can place an executable in a…
more
higher-level directory of the path, and Windows will resolve that executable instead of the intended executable.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
—
—
—
V5.3.2
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Explicit validation of path inputs stops .. sequences from ever being interpreted by the file system.
Access enforcement directly blocks unauthorized file reads/writes that result from unresolved .. sequences.
Information-flow rules can be configured to reject traversals that would move data outside an approved directory boundary.
Least privilege reduces the set of reachable files even when a traversal succeeds.
Secure-engineering principles require safe pathname construction and input neutralization before any file operation.
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 input validation and path sanitization that prevent relative traversal.
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 in development catches path traversal via static/dynamic analysis, but does not itself implement the fix.
Secure development lifecycle mandates input validation and path-handling controls that directly prevent relative path traversal.
Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against path traversal and other injection flaws.
Secure architecture principles include directory isolation and canonicalization, reducing but not eliminating traversal risk.
Secure coding standards require neutralizing path traversal sequences, directly addressing CWE-23.
Information access restriction limits which files can be reached, mitigating impact but not preventing the traversal flaw.