CVE-2023-27327 | Parallels Desktop Toolgate Time-Of-Check Time-Of-Use Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

Parallels Desktop Toolgate Time-Of-Check Time-Of-Use Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute high-privileged code on the target guest system in order to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the Toolgate component. The issue results from the lack of proper locking when performing operations on an object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the context of the current user on the host system. Was ZDI-CAN-18964.

Published: 2024-05-03 Last update: 2025-08-06 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2023-27327 is rated Low Risk (36.5/100): CVSS High severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.06%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-27327

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-11-21 0.04% 0.06% +0.02%
2 2025-11-18 0.06% 0.04% -0.02%
3 2025-09-22 — 0.06% —

Full EPSS history (10 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-27327

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.5 3.0 HIGH
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:H)
They need powerful rights—admin, root, or similar—before this pays off.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 0.8 6.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-27327

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-27327

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
parallels parallels_desktop < 18.1.1_\(53328\) cpe:2.3:a:parallels:parallels_desktop:*:*:*:*:*:macos:*:*

References for CVE-2023-27327

cvelogic Threat Intelligence