CVE-2025-41244: Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools Privilege Defined with Unsafe Actions Vulnerability

Should you act?

Exploited: patch now if you run it

CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

• Yes, if you run Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools. CISA added this CVE to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2025-10-30, which means there is reliable evidence of exploitation in the wild. US federal agencies must remediate by 2025-11-20; treat that as the outer limit, not the target.
• EPSS 8.6%, percentile 95: FIRST’s model estimates a 8.6% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 95% of all scored CVEs (very high). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
• Needs local access needed. Lower urgency for most teams unless an attacker could already run code on the machine.

What it is

VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a local privilege escalation vulnerability. A malicious local actor with non-administrative privileges having access to a VM with VMware Tools installed and managed by Aria Operations with SDMP enabled may exploit this vulnerability to escalate privileges to root on the same VM.

CISA’s summary

Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a privilege defined with unsafe actions vulnerability. A malicious local actor with non-administrative privileges having access to a VM with VMware Tools installed and managed by Aria Operations with SDMP enabled may exploit this vulnerability to escalate privileges to root on the same VM.

Weakness type: CWE-267.

Product: Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools · Assigned by: vmware · Published: 2025-09-29

Affected and fixed versions

Severity scores

• Attack vector: local access needed
• Attack complexity: low
• Privileges required: low (any account)
• User interaction: none
• Scope: unchanged

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

• CISA KEV: added 2025-10-30; federal due date 2025-11-20. Known ransomware use: Unknown.
• CISA required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
• CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active, automatable no, technical impact total.
• FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 8.63% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 95.

Timeline

• 2025-09-29 — CVE record published by vmware
• 2025-10-30 — Added to CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog
• 2025-11-20 — CISA remediation deadline for US federal agencies
• 2026-02-26 — CVE record last updated

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Vendor and project advisories, patches

1. support.broadcom.com support.broadcom.com

Vulnerability records

1. CVE.org record CVE-2025-41244 cve.org
2. NVD entry CVE-2025-41244 nvd.nist.gov

Government

1. CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog entry cisa.gov

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

1. support.broadcom.com support.broadcom.com
2. blog.nviso.eu blog.nviso.eu
3. lists.debian.org lists.debian.org
4. openwall.com openwall.com

All exploited Broadcom vulnerabilities · Today’s Security Digest