Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw can let a low-privileged local user gain elevated system access on systems running AspEmail 5.6.0.2. The issue is unsafe write access to the product's BIN directory, allowing replacement of the EmailAgent service executable.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority on shared servers, hosting platforms, or systems where low-privileged users can log in. The business risk is privilege escalation after initial local access, not unauthenticated remote compromise.
Technical view
CVE-2023-53949 is a CWE-732 permissions weakness in AspEmail 5.6.0.2. Local authenticated users can abuse full write permissions in the BIN directory affecting the Persits Software EmailAgent service binary, leading to local privilege escalation. CVSS 4.0 score is 8.5.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to hosts running AspEmail 5.6.0.2 with the EmailAgent service and unsafe BIN directory permissions. The provided affected-version metadata is incomplete, so asset owners should confirm installed versions and vendor guidance.
Exploitation context
The bundle cites an ExploitDB entry, indicating public exploit information exists. CISA KEV status is false in the provided data, and no cited source in the bundle confirms active exploitation.
Researcher notes
The key evidence is local privilege escalation through excessive binary directory permissions. Version data is inconsistent: narrative sources identify 5.6.0.2, while affected metadata lists version 0. Do not broaden scope without vendor confirmation.
Mitigation direction
- Check Persits/AspEmail vendor guidance for an official fix or supported upgrade.
- Remove write or modify permissions for non-administrators on the AspEmail BIN directory.
- Restrict local interactive and service account access on affected hosts.
- Reinstall or repair AspEmail from trusted media if binary tampering is suspected.
- Monitor the EmailAgent service executable for unexpected changes.
Validation and detection
- Inventory systems running AspEmail and the Persits Software EmailAgent service.
- Confirm whether installed versions match AspEmail 5.6.0.2.
- Review BIN directory permissions for non-administrative write or modify access.
- Verify the EmailAgent service executable path and integrity against trusted sources.
- Review endpoint logs or change records for suspicious service binary replacement.
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-732: Authorization and privilege behavior lookup
Authorization weaknesses can support privilege escalation and valid-account review, depending on exploit path. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupPrivilege behavior lookup
The CVE wording references privilege impact, so privilege escalation and authorization behavior review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2023-53949 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.5 (4.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
2 official scoresWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N——VulnCheckCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H2.55.9VulnCheckVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
8.5HighVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.4HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- ExploitDB-51380CVE reference, VulnCheck · exploit
- Official Product HomepageCVE reference, VulnCheck · product
- VulnCheck Advisory: AspEmail 5.6.0.2 Local Privilege Escalation via Binary Permission VulnerabilityCVE reference, VulnCheck · third-party-advisory
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource
Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.