CVE-2025-47809

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-47809 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Wibu CodeMeter versions prior to 8.30a. The flaw exists in the CodeMeter Control Center component, specifically during the import license workflow. An unprivileged user who has installed CodeMeter with User Account Control (UAC) enabled can exploit this vulnerability to launch a privileged instance of Windows Explorer. This allows the attacker to perform arbitrary operations with elevated privileges, including modifying system files, installing malware, or exfiltrating sensitive data. The vulnerability is triggered immediately after installation, before a logoff or reboot, and requires that the CodeMeter Control Center component is installed and has not been restarted. The CVSS score is 8.2 (High), indicating significant impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. No public exploit code or Nuclei template is available, but the attack vector is well-documented.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability is not related to NPM, PyPI, Go, or Ruby packages. It affects the Wibu CodeMeter software, which is a proprietary license management solution commonly used in industrial and enterprise environments. Organizations using CodeMeter should prioritize patching to mitigate supply chain risks.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 8.2 (High)
• Attack Vector (AV): Local (L) – The attacker must have local access to the system.
• Attack Complexity (AC): Low (L) – No special conditions are required beyond the installation state.
• Privileges Required (PR): Low (L) – The attacker needs only unprivileged user rights.
• User Interaction (UI): Required (R) – The attacker must interact with the CodeMeter Control Center UI.
• Scope (S): Unchanged (U) – The vulnerable component and the impacted component are the same.
• Confidentiality (C): High (H) – Full access to all system data.
• Integrity (I): High (H) – Ability to modify system files and configurations.
• Availability (A): High (H) – Potential to disrupt system operations.

Threat Level: High. The vulnerability is easy to exploit locally and provides immediate elevation to SYSTEM-level privileges. It is particularly dangerous in shared or multi-user environments where unprivileged users can install software.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability resides in the CodeMeter Control Center component, which is installed as part of the Wibu CodeMeter suite. During the initial installation (before a logoff or reboot), the CodeMeter Control Center runs with elevated privileges due to the UAC installation context. However, the user interface (UI) for importing licenses is not properly isolated from the underlying system.

Root Cause: The "Import License" functionality in CodeMeter Control Center allows a local user to navigate to a file system dialog. Due to improper privilege separation, this dialog can be used to spawn a new instance of Windows Explorer that inherits the elevated privileges of the CodeMeter Control Center process. This occurs because the CodeMeter Control Center does not drop its high-integrity level when interacting with the user.

Attack Flow:

1. An unprivileged user installs CodeMeter with UAC (default behavior).
2. The user does not log off or reboot after installation.
3. The user opens CodeMeter Control Center (which is still running with elevated privileges).
4. The user clicks "Import License" to open a file selection dialog.
5. Instead of selecting a license file, the user navigates to the file system root (e.g., C:\) and right-clicks to open a new Explorer window.
6. This new Explorer window runs with the same elevated privileges as the CodeMeter Control Center, granting the user SYSTEM-level access.

Prerequisites:

• CodeMeter version < 8.30a installed with UAC.
• CodeMeter Control Center component must be installed.
• The system must not have been restarted or logged off after installation.
• The CodeMeter Control Center must not have been restarted.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable Code (Pre-8.30a): The vulnerable implementation does not enforce integrity level checks when spawning file dialogs. The CodeMeter Control Center runs at a high integrity level (due to UAC installation) and does not lower its integrity level before presenting UI elements to the user. This allows the user to interact with the system at the same elevated level.

// Vulnerable pseudo-code
void ImportLicense() {
    OpenFileDialog dialog = new OpenFileDialog();
    dialog.ShowDialog(); // No integrity level check
    // User can navigate to system directories and spawn Explorer
}

Patched Code (8.30a and later): The patched version ensures that the CodeMeter Control Center runs at a lower integrity level when interacting with the user, or it restricts the file dialog to prevent navigation to system directories. Additionally, the process may drop privileges after the initial UAC elevation.

// Patched pseudo-code
void ImportLicense() {
    // Lower integrity level before showing UI
    WindowsIdentity.RunImpersonated(safeToken, () => {
        OpenFileDialog dialog = new OpenFileDialog();
        dialog.InitialDirectory = Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.MyDocuments);
        dialog.ShowDialog();
    });
}

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

Lab Environment:

• Windows 10/11 (or Windows Server 2019/2022) with UAC enabled.
• Wibu CodeMeter version 8.20 (or any version < 8.30a).
• A local user account with standard privileges.

Exploitation Steps:

1. Install CodeMeter (version < 8.30a) using the default UAC prompt. Do not log off or reboot.
2. Launch CodeMeter Control Center from the Start Menu.
3. Click on "Import License" to open the file selection dialog.
4. In the dialog, navigate to C:\Windows\System32 or any system directory.
5. Right-click in the file list area and select "Open in new window" (or use the address bar to type explorer.exe).
6. A new Windows Explorer window will open with SYSTEM privileges.
7. From this elevated Explorer, you can launch cmd.exe or powershell.exe as SYSTEM.

Proof of Concept (PoC):

# After gaining elevated Explorer, run:
Start-Process cmd.exe -Verb RunAs
# This will open a command prompt with SYSTEM privileges.

Blue Team

Detection:

• Monitor for unusual child processes of CodeMeterCC.exe (CodeMeter Control Center). Specifically, look for explorer.exe spawned by CodeMeterCC.exe.
• Monitor for file system navigation events from CodeMeterCC.exe to sensitive directories (e.g., C:\Windows, C:\Program Files).
• Use Sysmon Event ID 1 (Process Creation) to detect explorer.exe launched with high integrity level from a non-standard parent.

Prevention:

• Apply the patch by upgrading to CodeMeter version 8.30a or later.
• Enforce application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized execution of explorer.exe from CodeMeterCC.exe.
• Restrict user installation rights via Group Policy to prevent unprivileged installations.
• Require a logoff or reboot after any software installation.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Process Creation: explorer.exe spawned by CodeMeterCC.exe (parent PID).
• File System Access: Unusual access to C:\Windows\System32 or C:\Program Files by CodeMeterCC.exe.
• Registry Changes: Modification of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WIBU-SYSTEMS\CodeMeter by a non-admin user.
• Network Connections: Outbound connections from CodeMeterCC.exe to license servers (may be benign but should be monitored).
• Event Logs: Windows Security Event ID 4688 (Process Creation) with CodeMeterCC.exe as parent and explorer.exe as child.

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_47809_CodeMeter_PrivEsc {
    meta:
        description = "Detects exploitation of CVE-2025-47809 in Wibu CodeMeter"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-47809"
    strings:
        $s1 = "CodeMeterCC.exe" nocase
        $s2 = "ImportLicense" nocase
        $s3 = "explorer.exe" nocase
    condition:
        $s1 and $s2 and $s3
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-47809 CodeMeter Privilege Escalation
id: 12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012
status: experimental
description: Detects exploitation of CVE-2025-47809 where CodeMeter Control Center spawns an elevated Explorer
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
references:
    - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-47809
logsource:
    category: process_creation
    product: windows
detection:
    selection:
        ParentImage|endswith: '\CodeMeterCC.exe'
        Image|endswith: '\explorer.exe'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of Explorer from CodeMeter (rare)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert tcp $HOME_NET any -> $EXTERNAL_NET any (msg:"CVE-2025-47809 CodeMeter Potential Exploitation"; flow:to_server; content:"CodeMeter"; nocase; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Patch: Upgrade to Wibu CodeMeter version 8.30a or later. This is the only official fix.
2. Workaround: If patching is not possible, ensure that users log off or reboot immediately after installing CodeMeter. This breaks the exploitation window.
3. Restrict Installation: Use Group Policy to prevent standard users from installing software that requires UAC elevation.
4. Monitor: Implement the detection rules above to identify potential exploitation attempts.

Long-Term Mitigations:

• Enforce the principle of least privilege for all users.
• Use application control solutions (e.g., AppLocker, Windows Defender Application Control) to block unauthorized process spawning.
• Regularly audit software installations and privilege escalations.
• Consider using a dedicated license management server to reduce local installation requirements.

Valters IT Signature

Report generated by Valters IT DevSecOps Intelligence Unit