CVE-2020-3952

CRITICAL KEV NUCLEI

VMware vCenter Server vmdir Information Disclosure

Title source: metasploit
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

CVE-2020-3952 is actively exploited and listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added November 3, 2021. EIP tracks 8 public exploits from researchers including Photubias, guardicore, bb33bb, including a Metasploit module auxiliary/admin/ldap/vmware_vcenter_vmdir_auth_bypass. A Nuclei detection template is also available.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This exploit demonstrates an authentication bypass vulnerability in VMware vCenter Server 6.7 by manipulating LDAP packets to create a new user and add it to the Administrators group. It leverages improper access controls in upgraded vCenter instances.

Description

Under certain conditions, vmdir that ships with VMware vCenter Server, as part of an embedded or external Platform Services Controller (PSC), does not correctly implement access controls.

Exploits (8)

exploitdb WORKING POC
by Photubias · textwebappsmultiple
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/48535

This exploit demonstrates an authentication bypass vulnerability in VMware vCenter Server 6.7 by manipulating LDAP packets to create a new user and add it to the Administrators group. It leverages improper access controls in upgraded vCenter instances.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server 6.7 before update 3f
No auth needed
Prerequisites: vCenter Server 6.7 upgraded from 6.x · Network access to LDAP port (389)
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 275 stars
by guardicore · remote
https://github.com/guardicore/vmware_vcenter_cve_2020_3952

This repository contains a functional Python exploit for CVE-2020-3952, which leverages an LDAP authentication bypass in VMware vCenter to create a new administrative user. The exploit performs an LDAP bind with invalid credentials, adds a new user, and grants it administrator privileges.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server 6.7 (upgraded from previous versions, not clean installs)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the vCenter LDAP service (port 389/636) · Python with python-ldap library installed
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 7 stars
by bb33bb · poc
https://github.com/bb33bb/CVE-2020-3952

This repository contains a functional exploit PoC for CVE-2020-3952, a remote command injection vulnerability in VMware vCenter Server. The script sends a crafted payload to establish a reverse shell on the target system.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target VMware vCenter Server · Target system must be vulnerable to CVE-2020-3952
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 4 stars
by chronoloper · poc
https://github.com/chronoloper/CVE-2020-3952

This script checks for the presence of CVE-2020-3952 by verifying vCenter upgrade logs and version details via SSH. It does not exploit the vulnerability but confirms susceptibility based on version and upgrade history.

Classification
Scanner 95%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server (6.7 before 6.7U3f)
Auth required
Prerequisites: SSH access to vCenter as root · Valid root credentials
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 3 stars
by Fa1c0n35 · remote
https://github.com/Fa1c0n35/vmware_vcenter_cve_2020_3952

This repository contains a functional Python exploit for CVE-2020-3952, which leverages an LDAP authentication bypass in VMware vCenter to create a new administrative user. The exploit performs an LDAP bind with invalid credentials, adds a new user, and grants it administrator privileges.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server 6.7 (upgraded from previous versions, not clean installs)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the vCenter LDAP service (port 389) · Python with python-ldap library
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 1 stars
by gelim · remote
https://github.com/gelim/CVE-2020-3952

This repository contains a functional exploit PoC for CVE-2020-3952, which targets VMware vCenter Server. The exploit checks for vulnerability by attempting to modify the 'description' attribute of the built-in Administrators group via LDAP, demonstrating the vulnerability without creating an admin user.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the LDAP service on the target vCenter Server
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →
metasploit WORKING POC
by Hynek Petrak, JJ Lehmann, Ofri Ziv, wvu · rubypoc
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/auxiliary/admin/ldap/vmware_vcenter_vmdir_auth_bypass.rb

This Metasploit module exploits an LDAP authentication bypass in VMware vCenter Server's vmdir service (CVE-2020-3952) to add an arbitrary administrator user. It leverages invalid credentials to bypass authentication and then adds a new user to the Administrators group.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server 6.7 (prior to 6.7U3f, if upgraded from 6.0 or 6.5)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to LDAP service (port 636) · VMware vCenter Server vulnerable to CVE-2020-3952
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
metasploit WORKING POC
by Hynek Petrak, wvu · rubypoc
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/auxiliary/gather/vmware_vcenter_vmdir_ldap.rb

This Metasploit module exploits CVE-2020-3952, an information disclosure vulnerability in VMware vCenter Server's vmdir LDAP service. It performs an anonymous or authenticated LDAP bind to dump sensitive data, including password hashes, from vulnerable systems.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: VMware vCenter Server 6.7 (prior to 6.7U3f, if upgraded from 6.0 or 6.5)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to LDAP port (636/TCP) · Vulnerable VMware vCenter Server version
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

Nuclei Templates (1)

VMware vCenter Server LDAP Broken Access Control
CRITICALby 0x_Akoko

References (3)

Core 3

Scores

CVSS v3 9.8
EPSS 0.9437
EPSS Percentile 100.0%
Attack Vector NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation active
Automatable yes
Technical Impact total

Details

CISA KEV 2021-11-03
VulnCheck KEV 2021-11-03
InTheWild.io 2021-07-23
ENISA EUVD EUVD-2020-25217
CWE
CWE-306
Status published
Products (1)
vmware/vcenter_server 6.7
Published Apr 10, 2020
KEV Added Nov 03, 2021
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026