CVE-2023-20867: in the CISA KEV catalogue
VMware Tools Authentication Bypass Vulnerability. CISA added CVE-2023-20867 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on 2023-06-23 with a default due date of 2023-07-14. Known ransomware campaign use: Unknown. Forensic triage flag: No.
VMware Tools contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the vgauth module. A fully compromised ESXi host can force VMware Tools to fail to authenticate host-to-guest operations, impacting the confidentiality and integrity of the guest virtual machine. An attacker must have root access over ESXi to exploit this vulnerability. (CISA description)
- Vendor / product
- VMware Tools
- CWE
- CWE-287
- CISA required action
- Apply updates per vendor instructions.
- EPSS
- 14%, percentile 96 (scored 2026-11-03)
EPSS puts about 14 in 100 odds (14%) on exploitation activity being observed in the next 30 days. Its score is higher than or equal to that of 96% of scored CVEs. This is a model estimate about exploitation anywhere, not about your environment.
Vendor and reference links (from CISA)
Your own deadline under CISA BOD 26-04 depends on exposure, automatability and technical impact: work it out with the BOD 26-04 calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Is CVE-2023-20867 in the CISA KEV catalogue?
Yes. CISA added CVE-2023-20867 (VMware Tools Authentication Bypass Vulnerability) to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on 2023-06-23. CISA's default due date for it is 2023-07-14.
Is CVE-2023-20867 used in ransomware attacks?
CISA marks known ransomware campaign use as Unknown for CVE-2023-20867. That means CISA lacks confirmation, not that ransomware groups do not use it.
What should I do about CVE-2023-20867?
CISA's required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Sources
- CISA, Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog (accessed 2026-11-03)
- FIRST, Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS) (EPSS by FIRST; scores generated by Empirical Security)
- NVD record for CVE-2023-20867