SimpleHelp path traversal (CVE-2024-57727) — configuration files and hashed user passwords retrievable without authentication
A path traversal vulnerability in the remote support software SimpleHelp. Unauthenticated parties are described as able to download arbitrary files from the host through crafted requests, including server configuration files and hashed user passwords.
Key facts
- CVE IDCVE-2024-57727
- Affected (vendor / product)SimpleHelp SimpleHelp
- CWECWE-22
- ExploitationListed in CISA KEV (exploitation confirmed); also confirmed used in ransomware
- Remediation due2025-03-06 (U.S. federal civilian agencies, BOD 22-01)
Key points
- The affected product is the remote support software SimpleHelp, classified as CWE-22.
- Unauthenticated remote parties are described as able to retrieve arbitrary files from the host through crafted requests.
- Files that may be retrieved include server configuration files and hashed user passwords.
- Remote support software holds connections to many environments, so an effect on it can reach outward.
- Added February 13, 2025 with a due date of March 6, 21 days later; use in ransomware campaigns is known.
1The shape of path traversal
A system that serves files is normally built to hand over only what lies within a defined location. Path traversal is the flaw where a specification pointing outside that defined range is accepted. The class name, improper limitation of a pathname to a restricted directory, describes exactly that state.
Here unauthenticated parties are described as able to retrieve arbitrary files. That it holds before authentication is what makes the reach large.
2What may be read out
- 1Configuration filesMay contain information about how the server is set up
- 2Hashed user passwordsNot usable as they stand, but their exposure is itself the issue
- 3The nature of the effectReading rather than writing
- 4What reading meansInformation usable for a later stage leaves the system
Reading alone can look like no immediate harm, yet information about configuration and authentication is material for deciding what to do next. That is why a read-only flaw is not necessarily minor.
3Where remote support software sits
Remote support software exists so that a supporting party can connect to another environment and operate within it. By its nature it holds connections to many environments and often runs with high privilege. Where that software itself is affected, the effect can reach outward to everything connected to it.
Of the unpublished entries this site holds as of 2026-09-03, 330 of 1,602 are marked as known to be used in ransomware campaigns. Tools placed there for support and operation appear among them in other articles on this site as well.
4That the description says multiple
The description records multiple path traversal vulnerabilities rather than one. Where flaws of the same kind are found in several places, that suggests less an individual oversight than that the mechanism for checking range was itself insufficient. Applying fixes calls for confirming which version closed what.
Why it matters
Tools placed there for support and operation hold connections to many environments, so an effect on them reaches outward. Where flaws of the same kind appear in several places, the checking mechanism itself warrants review.
FAQ
What is path traversal?
Is reading alone a minor effect?
Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. official data below. Always verify the exact, latest details and applicability with the official and vendor sources.
- CISA KEV Catalog (known exploited list)
- NVD (CVE details / CVSS)
- Vendor / reference advisory
- This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. KEV data is CC0 (public domain).