basicsecurity.net
Proof, not just disclosure.
Threats / VMware / CVE-2022-22960
CVE-2022-22960 · EUVD no mirror located · GCVE no mirror located Verified 2026-06-22

VMware Multiple Products vulnerability

VMware Workspace ONE Access, Identity Manager, and vRealize Automation contain a privilege escalation vulnerability in support scripts due to improper permissions, allowing attackers to gain elevated system access.

Verdict

Today item — known-exploited.

An authenticated or local attacker can exploit improper permission controls in support scripts to escalate privileges and gain administrative access to affected VMware infrastructure components, potentially compromising identity and access management systems.

CISA KEV Yes · 2022-04-153EPSS 0.37171 (verify live)4
01

Is it exploitable?

— the evidence, ranked above the score
Reported exploitation
7 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-04-15).
CISA KEV ↗Confirmed
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.37171 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: VMware, Multiple Products. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
NVD ↗Reported
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-250 Excessive Privileges — weakness family: Authorization / access control.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
NVD ↗Reported
WeaknessCWE-250 · Excessive PrivilegesAuthorization / access control
02

Who’s exploiting it?

— attribution turns risk into urgency
Attribution not established

No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.

03

Why it matters

— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board
1

Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1

Attacker
I gain initial access to a system running vulnerable VMware software through standard user credentials or local shell access.
Business
An attacker establishes a foothold in identity and access management infrastructure with limited privileges.
2

Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2

Attacker
I identify and execute support scripts with improper permission restrictions to escalate my privileges to administrator or system level.
Business
The organization loses privilege boundary enforcement, enabling lateral movement and deeper system compromise.
3

Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3

Attacker
I leverage elevated privileges to modify authentication policies, create backdoor accounts, or access sensitive identity data across the VMware environment.
Business
Attackers gain control over identity systems, potentially compromising all downstream applications and services relying on these platforms for authentication.
04

What to do

— defensible action
  • Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05

Coverage & confidence

— what we know, and what we don’t

Established (cited)

  • KEV listing (CISA)
  • EPSS probability (FIRST)
  • 7 reported-exploitation source(s)
  • CWE weakness mapping (NVD)
  • Catalogued by vmware (CNA)
  • Coverage gaps — stated, not hidden

  • No EUVD / GCVE mirror in feed — single-authority dependency for the identifier.
  • EPSS & exposure are time-varying; verify live at the source.
  • Threat-actor attribution not established from feed data — absence of a name is not absence of compromise.
  • No finder/reporter credit recorded in the public CVE entry — the work behind this find is unattributed.
  • Disclosure & credit2
    Catalogued by vmwareCNA
    Credited with finding itNo finder named in the public CVE record — the work behind this find is unattributed.