Vulnerability

CVE-2020-0787

High· 7.8KEVEXPLOITCVSS7.8EPSS59%

.rules3/5

Microsoft Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) Improper Privilege Management Vulnerability

Microsoft Windows BITS is vulnerable to to a privilege elevation vulnerability if it improperly handles symbolic links. An actor can exploit this vulnerability to execute arbitrary code with system-level privileges.

Threat signal

100/100

Severe

Severity

high

CVSS

7.8

EPSS

59%

Active

KEV

CISA KEV — actively exploited

Ransomware: Known1416d overdue

AffectedMicrosoft — Windows

Added to KEV

2022-01-28

Federal patch due (BOD 22-01)

2022-07-28

Required action (CISA verbatim)

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Vendor advisory + references

https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-0787

CISA description: “Microsoft Windows BITS is vulnerable to to a privilege elevation vulnerability if it improperly handles symbolic links. An actor can exploit this vulnerability to execute arbitrary code with system-level privileges.”

CVSS

v3.1Open in FIRST calculator →

7.8/ 10HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack VectorLocalRequires local access — shell, console, or local app.
Attack ComplexityLowNo special conditions — exploit works reliably.
Privileges RequiredNoneUnauthenticated — no credentials needed.
User InteractionRequiredRequires user action (click, file open, etc).
ScopeUnchangedImpact contained to the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality ImpactHighTotal disclosure of sensitive data.
Integrity ImpactHighTotal compromise of integrity — full data modification possible.
Availability ImpactHighTotal loss of availability — full DoS possible.

EPSS

Exploit prediction · 30-day horizonFIRST.org →

59.3%

probability of exploitation in next 30 days

p98

higher than 98% of all CVEs

3-day trend↑ 0pp

Statistically about to be weaponized — top-tier triage urgency.

Vendor VEX

No VEX statements published for CVE-2020-0787. Vendors publish VEX (Vulnerability Exploitability eXchange) to assert per-product whether a CVE is actually exploitable in their distribution.

SSVCAct

Active exploitation with total impact on essential/support systems

exploitation: active
automatable: no
impact: total
mission: support

Lifecycle

2022-01-28Added to CISA KEVransomware: Known
2022-01-28Public exploit observedmetasploit
2022-01-28Published
2022-07-28Federal patch due (BOD 22-01)
2026-06-12Last modified1 source

No source-event history recorded yet. New revisions will appear here as ingestors re-fetch this CVE.