CASCACascade Atlas

Evidence dossier

CVE-2024-37085

VMware ESXi contains an authentication bypass vulnerability.

Exploited in the wild (CISA KEV since Jul 30, 2024). NVD reports CVSS 3.1 7.2. Severity assessments differ within at least one CVSS version. EPSS estimates 26.8% exploit likelihood as of Aug 27, 2026.

70.9–76.5Priority evidence range
Evidence current through Aug 27, 2026, 6:09 PM UTC

As of Aug 27, 2026

Normalized restatement

VMware ESXi contains an authentication bypass vulnerability. A malicious actor with sufficient Active Directory (AD) permissions can gain full access to an ESXi host that was previously configured to use AD for user management https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2012/09/joining-vsphere-hosts-to-active-directory.html by re-creating the configured AD group ('ESXi Admins' by default) after it was deleted from AD.

State
PUBLISHED
Published
Jun 25, 2024
Updated
Oct 21, 2025
Evidence coverage
82%

Evidence chronology

What was known when

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  1. Source dateSource date omittedFirst observed by CASCA
    CISA-ADP

    Record text: CISA ADP Vulnrichment

    Inspect raw assertion
    Field
    container
    Value
    CISA ADP Vulnrichment
    Original evidence ↗
  2. Source dateSource date omittedFirst observed by CASCA
    CVE Program

    Record text: CVE Program Container

    Inspect raw assertion
    Field
    container
    Value
    CVE Program Container
    Original evidence ↗
  3. Source dateSource date omittedFirst observed by CASCA
    vmware

    Record text: VMware ESXi contains an authentication bypass vulnerability. A malicious actor with sufficient Active Directory (AD) permissions can gain full access to an ESXi host that was previously configured to use AD for user management https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2012/09/joining-vsphere-hosts-to-active-directory.html by re-creating the configured AD group ('ESXi Admins' by default) after it was deleted from AD.

    Inspect raw assertion
    Field
    container
    Value
    VMware ESXi contains an authentication bypass vulnerability. A malicious actor with sufficient Active Directory (AD) permissions can gain full access to an ESXi host that was previously configured to use AD for user management https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2012/09/joining-vsphere-hosts-to-active-directory.html by re-creating the configured AD group ('ESXi Admins' by default) after it was deleted from AD.
    Original evidence ↗
  4. Source dateFirst observed by CASCA
    CISA KEV

    Exploitation cataloged: VMware ESXi Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

    Inspect raw assertion
    Field
    observed_exploitation
    Value
    VMware ESXi Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
    Original evidence ↗
  5. Source dateFirst observed by CASCA
    FIRST EPSS

    EPSS score: 26.77% probability · 97.88th percentile

    Inspect raw assertion
    Field
    model_probability
    Value
    Probability 0.267700000000; percentile 0.978760000000
    Original evidence ↗

Assessments differ

NVD7.2CVSS 3.1 · source date omitted
security@vmware.com6.8CVSS 3.1 · source date omitted

Values are shown separately by source and CVSS version.

ExploitationCatalog member

CISA KEV · catalog date Jul 30, 2024 · first observed Jul 19, 2026

Exploit likelihood26.77%

FIRST EPSS · score date Aug 27, 2026 · 97.9th percentile · first observed Aug 27, 2026

SeverityAssessments differ

NVD · CVSS 3.1 · first observed Jul 19, 2026 · values shown separately below

Evidence detail

Source limits and decisions

Why each evidence state has this value

casca-unknown-reasons-v1
Exploitation statusEvidence supported

Eligible evidence is present for this bounded claim.

Revision
evidence-policy-v1.1.0
Cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Resolution
None
Exploit likelihoodEvidence supported

Eligible evidence is present for this bounded claim.

Revision
evidence-policy-v1.1.0
Cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Resolution
None
Severity assessmentAssessments differ

Eligible assertions materially conflict and remain visible side by side.

Revision
casca-direct-cvss-eligibility-v1
Cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Resolution
Resolve conflict
Affected productsSource-reported scope

The cited source assertion is retained while canonical product linkage remains open.

Revision
casca-factor-d-obligations-v1
Cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Resolution
Resolve identity

Source comparison

Who said what

CISA-ADPIndependent enrichment
Record text

CISA ADP Vulnrichment

Inspect raw assertion
Field
container
Value
CISA ADP Vulnrichment
Source dateSource date omittedFirst observed by CASCAOriginal evidence ↗
CVE ProgramDerivative copy
Record text

CVE Program Container

Inspect raw assertion
Field
container
Value
CVE Program Container
Source dateSource date omittedFirst observed by CASCAOriginal evidence ↗
vmwareOriginal assertion
Record text

VMware ESXi contains an authentication bypass vulnerability. A malicious actor with sufficient Active Directory (AD) permissions can gain full access to an ESXi host that was previously configured to use AD for user management https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2012/09/joining-vsphere-hosts-to-active-directory.html by re-creating the configured AD group ('ESXi Admins' by default) after it was deleted from AD.

Inspect raw assertion
Field
container
Value
VMware ESXi contains an authentication bypass vulnerability. A malicious actor with sufficient Active Directory (AD) permissions can gain full access to an ESXi host that was previously configured to use AD for user management https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2012/09/joining-vsphere-hosts-to-active-directory.html by re-creating the configured AD group ('ESXi Admins' by default) after it was deleted from AD.
Source dateSource date omittedFirst observed by CASCAOriginal evidence ↗
CISA KEVOriginal assertion
Exploitation cataloged

VMware ESXi Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

Inspect raw assertion
Field
observed_exploitation
Value
VMware ESXi Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
Source dateFirst observed by CASCAOriginal evidence ↗
FIRST EPSSOriginal assertion
EPSS score

26.77% probability · 97.88th percentile

Inspect raw assertion
Field
model_probability
Value
Probability 0.267700000000; percentile 0.978760000000
Source dateFirst observed by CASCAOriginal evidence ↗

Applicability

Cited product scope

Trace impact →
13Underlying assertions
2Canonical products
13Target assertions
0Constraint assertions

Grouped from 1 configuration nodes in this exact snapshot. Visual grouping is navigational; asset exposure and root cause require cited evidence.

Identity source boundaries
  • Cpe dictionary1,775,266 records · observed through 2026-07-21T06:45:29.809Z27d65b0f-b718-4b4f-bb79-c47c68d09dfa
  • Cpe match643,502 records · observed through 2026-07-21T08:13:17.697Z955dae73-7302-438b-aee1-058d7cc5d48e

8 scope groups

vmware · source assertedn/aVMware Cloud FoundationDirect source scope
Affected: 5.xAffected: 4.x
Source-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Inspect raw assertion[{"status": "affected", "version": "5.x"}, {"status": "affected", "version": "4.x"}]
vmware · source assertedn/aVMware ESXiDirect source scope
Affected: 8.0 to before ESXi80U3-24022510 (custom comparison)Affected: 7.0
Source-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Inspect raw assertion[{"status": "affected", "version": "8.0", "lessThan": "ESXi80U3-24022510", "versionType": "custom"}, {"status": "affected", "version": "7.0"}]
CISA-ADP · source assertedvmwarecloud_foundationDirect source scope
Affected: 5.0 to before 5.2 (custom comparison)
Source-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Inspect raw assertion[{"status": "affected", "version": "5.0", "lessThan": "5.2", "versionType": "custom"}]
CISA-ADP · source assertedvmwarecloud_foundationDirect source scope
Affected: 4.0 to before 5.0 (custom comparison)
Source-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Inspect raw assertion[{"status": "affected", "version": "4.0", "lessThan": "5.0", "versionType": "custom"}]
CISA-ADP · source assertedvmwareesxiDirect source scope
Affected: 7.0
Source-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Inspect raw assertion[{"status": "affected", "version": "7.0"}]
CISA-ADP · source assertedvmwareesxiDirect source scope
Affected: 8.0 to before ESXi80U3-24022510 (custom comparison)
Source-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Inspect raw assertion[{"status": "affected", "version": "8.0", "lessThan": "ESXi80U3-24022510", "versionType": "custom"}]
NVD CPE · APPLICATIONvmwarecloud_foundationVulnerable target · 1 assertions
Any version (unconstrained) (>= 4.0, < 5.2)Canonical identity product-29d7e06677052d6292d0854ba656869395ea8e26a3dfe12b466a234813f9d5c3Linked exact
Scope supported
Inspect raw assertion
  1. cpe:2.3:a:vmware:cloud_foundation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 0
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    from including 4.0; through excluding 5.2
    Match ID
    7fa8dfe6-9c74-4711-a8af-3b170876a1f9
NVD CPE · OPERATING SYSTEMvmwareesxiVulnerable target · 12 assertions
Version 7.0; Version 8.0Canonical identity product-23a252291fc54c7d970af8a89ad978d1de708dae5df8285a6f74b35881b5bd32Linked exact
Scope supported
Inspect raw assertions
  1. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_2:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 10
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    360c1b71-5360-4379-b0de-63bb8f5e6da2
  2. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_2b:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 11
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    b16ed7c1-9881-452a-8be0-eddeaefe3d7b
  3. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:c:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 5
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    79d84d76-54be-49e9-905c-7d65b4b42d68
  4. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_1a:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 7
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    29af8474-2d7a-4c5a-82b9-7a873ad90c2e
  5. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 1
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    48d2e2d5-a0b8-4af1-bf4a-30154f754c94
  6. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_1:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 6
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    2f8767f7-7c3d-457d-9eac-e8a30796f751
  7. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:a:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 3
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    fe44b379-9943-4dd1-8514-26f87482afa8
  8. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 2
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    7a1a402a-9262-4b97-a0b7-e5ae045e394d
  9. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_1d:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 9
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    18fd08c9-5895-4bf4-bbe0-c2dda5f6b836
  10. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_1c:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 8
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    7781a2ca-d927-48cd-9932-ae42b7ba1efe
  11. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:update_2c:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 12
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    ed92209f-fbd6-43f9-9a15-3842b139fcc9
  12. cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:8.0:b:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Official link
    Linked exact
    Role
    Vulnerable target
    Configuration
    0 · node/0 · match 4
    Logic
    OR
    Version bounds
    No explicit bounds
    Match ID
    2a797377-8945-4d75-aa68-a768855e5842

Affected-product evidence

Accepted scope and product mapping

2 canonical links · 1 source-reported links

Mapping establishedEvidence supported

vendor-6b310233dbc1eceadb11ae200191b71c5a499cd0c4916b064b08d7f851b21f9f · product-23a252291fc54c7d970af8a89ad978d1de708dae5df8285a6f74b35881b5bd32

Source class
Nvd cpe vulnerable target
Assertions
12
Mapping revision
cpe23-exact-mapping-v1
Observed cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Retained assertion IDs
0a9380d6-0726-4724-8e56-96dde3c4178e26d4f822-da61-4bb4-a055-58c366209c2547f9a01d-5da8-43cb-b1e6-99ce1f68880660344760-080c-4489-ae70-1a5809d3ce9161a9013d-cdaf-4a6f-a4f6-e429a069113f68d19678-0547-4273-bbcc-afa8ddb126ae7abc046c-f063-4b59-95ae-28c13ebf13b09e5287e7-adaf-4fc1-b404-296e5efe79c4b01c291c-be80-4aa0-a9e2-10d937b30dcbbf4175ed-3176-44b1-a397-1896e1fd7c67eca86821-76e7-4b34-916a-11fa12a61231fb6caa7f-a322-436e-86b7-128121132ec2
Mapping establishedEvidence supported

vendor-6b310233dbc1eceadb11ae200191b71c5a499cd0c4916b064b08d7f851b21f9f · product-29d7e06677052d6292d0854ba656869395ea8e26a3dfe12b466a234813f9d5c3

Source class
Nvd cpe vulnerable target
Assertions
1
Mapping revision
cpe23-exact-mapping-v1
Observed cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Retained assertion IDs
2e2a1447-a323-44af-a4d7-5a8356022f8e
Source-reported scopeSource-reported scope

Canonical linkage remains open; the cited source assertion is retained below.

Vendor specified only by source · Product specified only by source

Source class
Direct cve affected
Assertions
6
Mapping revision
cpe23-exact-mapping-v1
Observed cutoff
Aug 27, 2026
Retained assertion IDs
0ba82326-dfe1-4b1d-9277-770acb5072a87593100a-66f1-40c2-9f03-42087d5f756dc3105205-6f9e-4a3a-abc9-cd5e3f9cc88fca331307-7cb0-4eb4-8076-910816529800d94e245b-058c-471b-be7b-d39b5fc0cea9fe081d0b-2b4b-43a5-928b-d3be31645138

Assessments

CVSS by origin

7.2
NVDCVSS 3.1 · role Primary · priority eligiblevalid_matchCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
6.8
security@vmware.comCVSS 3.1 · role Secondary · priority eligiblevalid_matchCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
6.8
vmwareCVSS 3.1 · role unknown · display onlyDirect record assessment retained outside normalized eligibilityCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Direct CVE/CNA normalized decisions

6.8Priority eligible

vmware

CVSS 3.1 · Primary · Original assertion · rank 1

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Validation
Valid match
Recomputed
6.8
Decision reason
Evidence supported
Policy
casca-direct-cvss-eligibility-v1

Assessments are retained side by side under closed precedence. Cascade never averages CVSS.

Evidence boundaries

  • KEV membership is authoritative for the catalog, not proof of exposure in any environment.
  • EPSS is a dated model probability and not an individual-environment prediction.
  • Affected or fixed status applies only to the exact cited product and version scope; remaining scope stays source-scoped.
  • NVD-carried upstream facts remain derivative; independent corroboration requires a separately authored source.
  • Only NVD metrics validated under the generation-bound calculator are Public Priority eligible; direct CVE record metrics remain display-only.
  • NVD CVSS source eligibility is closed: NVD-authored, exact record-source, or registered same-CVE container origin; unmapped sources remain display-only.
  • Core replay supports the active and immediately prior generation; retrospective valid-at replay is deferred.
  • OSV aggregation and OSV-converted NVD material are not independent corroboration.
  • Red Hat facts are vendor assertions for the exact supplied products.
  • Nonmembership and not-yet-observed states are not proof of safety.