CVE-2017-4915· NVD / CVE Program· CNA vmware

VMware Workstation Pro/Player contains an insecure library loading vulnerability via ALSA sound driver configuration files.

VMware Workstation Pro/Player contains an insecure library loading vulnerability via ALSA sound driver configuration files. Successful exploitation of this issue may allow unprivileged host users to escalate their privileges to root in a Linux host machine.

HighCVSS 7.8 · v3.0—Weaponized No fix recorded

Published: May 22, 2017
Updated: Jun 16, 2026
EPSS: 5.4% · 92th percentile
CWE: CWE-863

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Action score

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS: 31 / 40 · 7.8 / 10
CISA KEV: 0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS: 2 / 30 · 5.4%

Affected systems

Vendor	Product	CPE
vmware	workstation player	cpe:2.3:a:vmware:workstation_player
vmware	workstation pro	cpe:2.3:a:vmware:workstation_pro
linux	linux kernel	cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

vmware workstation player12.0.0
vmware workstation pro12.0.0

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (vmware). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

VMware Workstation Pro/Player
- All 12.x versions prior to version 12.5.6affected

Same product

vmware: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

CVE-2016-5330Untrusted search path vulnerability in the HGFS (aka Shared Folders) feature in VMware Tools 10.0.5 in VMware ESXi 5.0 through 6.0, VMware W
36Monitor
CVE-2017-4903VMware ESXi 6.5 without patch ESXi650-201703410-SG, 6.0 U3 without patch ESXi600-201703401-SG, 6.0 U2 without patch ESXi600-201703403-SG, 6.
35Monitor
CVE-2017-4902VMware ESXi 6.5 without patch ESXi650-201703410-SG and 5.5 without patch ESXi550-201703401-SG; Workstation Pro / Player 12.x prior to 12.5.5
35Monitor
CVE-2017-4898VMware Workstation Pro/Player 12.x before 12.5.3 contains a DLL loading vulnerability that occurs due to the "vmware-vmx" process loading DL
35Monitor
CVE-2016-7086The installer in VMware Workstation Pro 12.x before 12.5.0 and VMware Workstation Player 12.x before 12.5.0 on Windows allows local users to
31Monitor
CVE-2016-7085Untrusted search path vulnerability in the installer in VMware Workstation Pro 12.x before 12.5.0 and VMware Workstation Player 12.x before
31Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

Metasploit module ×1
Exploit-DB entry ×2

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
Source	Kind	Date
Exploit-DB entry	local	2017-05-22
Exploit-DB entry	local	2018-12-30
Metasploit module	exploit/linux/local/vmware_alsa_configVMware Workstation ALSA Config File Local Privilege Escalationexploit	2017-05-22

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

First PoCMay 22, 2017same day
MetasploitMay 22, 2017same day
PublishedMay 22, 2017
TodaySep 30, 2026+3418 d

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
A low-privileged account is enough.
No user action is required.
No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality: high · data can be read
Integrity: high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability: high · the service can be disrupted

Attack vector: Local
Attack complexity: Low
Privileges required: Low
User interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality impact: High
Integrity impact: High
Availability impact: High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-863 · Incorrect Authorization

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

We don't hand-write analysis for all 385,000+ vulnerabilities; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.

We use this product, ask for help

Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records