CVE-2025-6264
Velociraptor allows collection of VQL queries packaged into Artifacts from endpoints. These artifacts can be used to do anything and usually run with elevated permissions. To limit access to some dangerous artifact, Velociraptor allows for those to require high permissions like EXECVE to launch.
The Admin.Client.UpdateClientConfig is an artifact used to update the client's configuration. This artifact did not enforce an additional required permission, allowing users with COLLECT_CLIENT permissions (normally given by the "Investigator" role) to collect it from endpoints and update the configuration.
This can lead to arbitrary command execution and endpoint takeover.
To successfully exploit this vulnerability the user must already have access to collect artifacts from the endpoint (i.e. have the COLLECT_CLIENT given typically by the "Investigator' role).
| Software | From | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
www.velocidex.com/golang/velociraptor
|
- | 0.74.3 |
| rapid7 / velociraptor | - | 0.74.3 |
- https://blog.talosintelligence.com/velociraptor-leveraged-in-ransomware-attacks
- https://blog.talosintelligence.com/velociraptor-leveraged-in-ransomware-attacks/
- https://docs.velociraptor.app/announcements/advisories/cve-2025-6264
- https://docs.velociraptor.app/announcements/advisories/cve-2025-6264/
- https://github.com/Velocidex/velociraptor/commit/21e7fd7138ddaa798cad35fd929864f6bb0c4e9c
- https://news.sophos.com/en-us/2025/08/26/velociraptor-incident-response-tool-abused-for-remote-access
- https://news.sophos.com/en-us/2025/08/26/velociraptor-incident-response-tool-abused-for-remote-access/
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A security vulnerability is a weakness in software, hardware, or configuration that can be exploited to compromise confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Many vulnerabilities are tracked as CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), which provide a standardized identifier so teams can coordinate patching, mitigation, and risk assessment across tools and vendors.
CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) estimates technical severity, but it doesn't automatically equal business risk. Prioritize using context like internet exposure, affected asset criticality, known exploitation (proof-of-concept or in-the-wild), and whether compensating controls exist. A "Medium" CVSS on an exposed, production system can be more urgent than a "Critical" on an isolated, non-production host.
A vulnerability is the underlying weakness. An exploit is the method or code used to take advantage of it. A zero-day is a vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor or has no publicly available fix when attackers begin using it. In practice, risk increases sharply when exploitation becomes reliable or widespread.
Recurring findings usually come from incomplete Asset Discovery, inconsistent patch management, inherited images, and configuration drift. In modern environments, you also need to watch the software supply chain: dependencies, containers, build pipelines, and third-party services can reintroduce the same weakness even after you patch a single host. Unknown or unmanaged assets (often called Shadow IT) are a common reason the same issues resurface.
Use a simple, repeatable triage model: focus first on externally exposed assets, high-value systems (identity, VPN, email, production), vulnerabilities with known exploits, and issues that enable remote code execution or privilege escalation. Then enforce patch SLAs and track progress using consistent metrics so remediation is steady, not reactive.
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