Tools vulnerabilitiesAnd the versions its exploited flaws hit.
Tools is made by VMware. We track 23 published vulnerabilities in it, across 102 versions. 2 of them are on the list of flaws known to be exploited, the newest added on 30 October 2025. If you run Tools, check your version against the exploited flaws below and patch those first.
The most recent Tools flaw added to the known-exploited list is CVE-2025-41244, on 30 October 2025. We keep watching the known-exploited list.
Which versions of Tools do the exploited flaws hit?
Each exploited flaw lists the versions it affects, usually as ranges. "12.5.0 to before 12.5.4" means from 12.5.0 up to, but not including, 12.5.4. Find your version, then patch.
- CVE-2025-41244Exploited list, 30 Oct 2025
Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools Privilege Defined with Unsafe Actions Vulnerability
12.5.0 to before 12.5.413.0.0.0 to before 13.0.5.0 - CVE-2023-20867Exploited list, 23 Jun 2023
VMware Tools Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
10.3.0 to before 12.2.5
Which Tools vulnerabilities are being exploited?
2 flaws are on the government list of vulnerabilities known to be exploited. These are the ones criminals are using now, so they go first, whatever their severity score says.
- 7.8Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools Privilege Defined with Unsafe Actions Vulnerability
Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a privilege defined with unsafe actions vulnerability.
- 3.9VMware Tools Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
VMware Tools contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the vgauth module.
Which Tools flaws are most likely to be used?
Ranked by the latest exploit-likelihood forecast: the chance each flaw is used in an attack in the next 30 days. A high severity score on its own doesn't tell you that. Flaws shared by many other makers' products are left out.
- 18%CVE-2016-5330High
Untrusted 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 Workstation Pro 12.1.x before 12.1.1, VMware Workstation Player 12.1.x before...
- 14%
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.
- 8.4%
VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a local privilege escalation vulnerability.
- 1.5%CVE-2021-21999High
VMware Tools for Windows (11.x.y prior to 11.2.6), VMware Remote Console for Windows (12.x prior to 12.0.1) , VMware App Volumes (2.x prior to 2.18.10 and 4 prior to 2103) contain a local privilege escalation...
- 1.5%CVE-2023-20900High
A malicious actor that has been granted Guest Operation Privileges https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/8.0/vsphere-security/GUID-6A952214-0E5E-4CCF-9D2A-90948FF643EC.html in a target virtual machine may be able...
- 1.2%CVE-2022-22943Medium
VMware Tools for Windows (11.x.y and 10.x.y prior to 12.0.0) contains an uncontrolled search path vulnerability.
- 0.8%CVE-2022-22977High
VMware Tools for Windows(12.0.0, 11.x.y and 10.x.y) contains an XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability.
- 0.7%CVE-2023-34058High
VMware Tools contains a SAML token signature bypass vulnerability.
- 0.7%CVE-2021-21997Medium
VMware Tools for Windows (11.x.y prior to 11.3.0) contains a denial-of-service vulnerability in the VM3DMP driver.
- 0.5%CVE-2022-31676High
VMware Tools (12.0.0, 11.x.y and 10.x.y) contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability.
Running Tools? We'll keep checking.
Looking flaws up one at a time doesn't scale. Tell us what you run once, and we tell you which flaws matter to you, in what order, and keep watching for new ones.
- Tell us what you runPick your software from a list, or let us work it out from your website.
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- Told as soon as we knowAn alert by email, in the app or by webhook to your own tools.
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1 flaw being exploited affects software Acme tracks
Broadcom VMware Aria Operations and VMware Tools contain a privilege defined with unsafe actions vulnerability. A malicious local actor with non-administrative privileges having access to a VM with VMware Tools installed and managed by Aria Operations with SDMP enabled may exploit this vulnerability to escalate privileges to root on the same VM.
- Matched to
- Tools on Acme's software list
- What to do
- Patch first, then check for signs of use
Sent to the alert recipients Acme chose. Also in the app and to Acme's webhook.
We track 23 published vulnerabilities listed under the name Tools, across 102 versions. The most recent Tools flaw added to the known-exploited list is CVE-2025-41244, on 30 October 2025.
2 are on the list of flaws known to be exploited. The most recently added are CVE-2025-41244 and CVE-2023-20867.
Each flaw names its own versions, usually as ranges. The newest, CVE-2025-41244, affects 12.5.0 to before 12.5.4, 13.0.0.0 to before 13.0.5.0. The versions for every exploited flaw are listed on this page.
Create a Precursor Intelligence account and track Tools. We match it against every published flaw, give each one a risk score from 0 to 100 and keep watching, so you hear about new ones as soon as we know, by email, in the app or by webhook.