Software Engineering Institute

Overview

The IDrive Cloud Backup Client for Windows, versions 7.0.0.63 and earlier, contains a privilege escalation vulnerability that allows any authenticated user to run arbitrary executables with NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM permissions.

Description

IDrive is a cloud backup service that allows users to encrypt, sync, and store data from multiple devices such as PCs, Macs, iPhones, and Androids in one cloud-based account. IDrive provides a Windows client for both desktop and server editions, which acts as both a thick client and a thin client with a web interface to manage cloud backups.

CVE-2026-1995 The IDrive Windows client utility id_service.exe runs as a process with elevated SYSTEM privileges and regularly reads from several files located under C:\ProgramData\IDrive. The UTF16-LE encoded contents of these files are used by the service as arguments for starting processes. Because of weak permission configurations, these files can be edited by any standard user logged into the system. An authenticated, low-privilege attacker can overwrite or add a new file that specifies a path to an arbitrary script or .exe, which will then be executed by the id_service.exe process with SYSTEM privileges.

Impact

This vulnerability enables an authenticated local user, or any user with access to the affected directory, to execute arbitrary code as SYSTEM on the target Windows device. A local attacker could exploit this vulnerability to escalate privileges and gain full control over the target machine, potentially enabling data theft, system modification, or arbitrary script execution.

Solution

IDrive has reported that a patch for this vulnerability is currently in development. Users should monitor IDrive releases and update their software to the latest version as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime, users are advised to restrict write permissions for the affected directory and employ additional controls such as EDR monitoring and Group Policies to detect and prevent unauthorized file modifications.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Matthew Owens and FRSecure for discovering and reporting this vulnerability. This document was written by Molly Jaconski.

Vendor Information