How severe is CVE-2018-10204?

CVE-2018-10204 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2018-10204 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (72nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-10204?

CVE-2018-10204 affects Purevpn. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-10204?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2018-10204 published?

CVE-2018-10204 was published on 2018-04-18 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-10204

CVE-2018-10204 is a high-severity vulnerability in Purevpn with a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-732.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 8.8)
CVSS v2: 9.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (72nd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-732
Affected product: Purevpn
Published: 2018-04-18
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

PureVPN 6.0.1 for Windows suffers from a SYSTEM privilege escalation vulnerability in its "sevpnclient" service. When configured to use the OpenVPN protocol, the "sevpnclient" service executes "openvpn.exe" using the OpenVPN config file located at %PROGRAMDATA%\purevpn\config\config.ovpn. This file allows "Write" permissions to users in the "Everyone" group. An authenticated attacker may modify this file to specify a dynamic library plugin that should run for every new VPN connection attempt. This plugin will execute code in the context of the SYSTEM account.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-10204?: PureVPN 6.0.1 for Windows suffers from a SYSTEM privilege escalation vulnerability in its "sevpnclient" service. When configured to use the OpenVPN protocol, the "sevpnclient" service executes "openvpn.exe" using the OpenVPN config file located at %PROGRAMDATA%\purevpn\config\config.ovpn. This file allows "Write" permissions to users in the "Everyone" group. An authenticated attacker may modify this file to specify a dynamic library plugin that should run for every new VPN connection attempt. This plugin will execute code in the context of the SYSTEM account.
How severe is CVE-2018-10204?: CVE-2018-10204 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2018-10204 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (72nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-10204?: CVE-2018-10204 affects Purevpn. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-10204?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2018-10204 published?: CVE-2018-10204 was published on 2018-04-18 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://github.com/VerSprite/research/blob/master/advisories/VS-2018-021.md

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:purevpn:purevpn:6.0.1:*:*:*:*:windows:*:*

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