CVE-2020-37062: DHCP Turbo Privilege Escalation Flaw

CVE-2020-37062 Overview

CVE-2020-37062 is an unquoted service path vulnerability affecting DHCP Turbo version 4.61298. This vulnerability allows local attackers to potentially execute arbitrary code by exploiting the service binary path. When a Windows service executable path contains spaces and is not enclosed in quotation marks, the system may misinterpret the path, enabling attackers to place malicious executables in strategic locations along the service path to gain elevated privileges when the service starts.

Critical Impact

Local attackers can achieve privilege escalation by placing a malicious executable in the unquoted service path, gaining SYSTEM-level privileges when the vulnerable service restarts.

Affected Products

• DHCP Turbo 4.61298

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-01 - CVE CVE-2020-37062 published to NVD
• 2026-02-03 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2020-37062

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability falls under CWE-428 (Unquoted Search Path or Element), a configuration flaw that occurs when a Windows service executable path containing spaces is registered without proper quotation marks. The DHCP Turbo service is installed with an unquoted path, which allows the Windows Service Control Manager (SCM) to potentially execute unintended binaries.

When Windows encounters an unquoted path like C:\Program Files\DHCP Turbo\service.exe, it attempts to resolve the path by checking multiple locations in sequence: first C:\Program.exe, then C:\Program Files\DHCP.exe, before finally reaching the intended executable. An attacker with local access and write permissions to any of these intermediate directories can plant a malicious executable that will be executed with the service's privileges—typically SYSTEM.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is improper configuration during the service installation process. DHCP Turbo 4.61298 registers its Windows service with an unquoted executable path in the Windows Registry. This configuration oversight fails to follow Windows security best practices, which mandate that service paths containing spaces must be enclosed in double quotation marks to prevent path injection attacks.

Attack Vector

This is a local attack vector vulnerability. An attacker must have local access to the target system with sufficient privileges to write files to directories in the service path hierarchy. The attack proceeds as follows:

1. The attacker identifies the unquoted service path used by DHCP Turbo
2. The attacker determines which directory locations they can write to along the path
3. A malicious executable is crafted and placed at an interpretable path location (e.g., C:\Program.exe or similar)
4. When the service is restarted—either through system reboot, manual restart, or service crash—Windows executes the malicious binary with elevated privileges
5. The attacker gains SYSTEM-level access to the compromised host

For detailed technical information and proof-of-concept details, see the Exploit-DB #48080 advisory.

Detection Methods for CVE-2020-37062

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected executables appearing in root directories (e.g., C:\Program.exe, C:\Program Files\DHCP.exe)
• Anomalous process execution originating from service paths that differ from the legitimate DHCP Turbo installation directory
• Suspicious file creation events in directories along the unquoted service path

Detection Strategies

• Query Windows services for unquoted paths using PowerShell: Get-WmiObject win32_service | Where-Object {$_.PathName -notlike '"*"' -and $_.PathName -like '* *'}
• Monitor for file creation events in C:\ and C:\Program Files\ directories for unexpected executable files
• Implement SentinelOne's behavioral AI to detect privilege escalation attempts through service binary hijacking

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable Windows Event logging for service start/stop events (Event IDs 7035, 7036)
• Configure file integrity monitoring (FIM) for directories along common service paths
• Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions like SentinelOne to identify anomalous process execution chains

How to Mitigate CVE-2020-37062

Immediate Actions Required

• Audit all installed services for unquoted paths containing spaces
• Manually correct the DHCP Turbo service registry entry to include quotation marks around the executable path
• Review directory permissions along the service path to restrict write access
• Contact Weird Solutions for updated software versions that address this vulnerability

Patch Information

No official patch information is available from the vendor at this time. Organizations should consult the Weird Solutions Homepage for updates or consider the workarounds below. Additional details are available in the VulnCheck Advisory on Turbo DHCP.

Workarounds

• Manually quote the service path in the Windows Registry to prevent path interpretation attacks
• Restrict write permissions on directories along the service path (e.g., C:\, C:\Program Files\)
• Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized executables from running
• Consider replacing DHCP Turbo with an alternative DHCP server solution if patches are not available

# Configuration example - Fix unquoted service path via registry
# Run in an elevated command prompt

# Query current service path
sc qc "DHCP Turbo"

# Modify the service binary path to include quotes (adjust path as needed)
sc config "DHCP Turbo" binPath= "\"C:\Program Files\DHCP Turbo\service.exe\""

# Verify the change
sc qc "DHCP Turbo"