CVE-2026-38764: Unistal Systems Protegent 360 privilege escalation in pgsecdl.sys

CVE-2026-38764 · Severity: info · CVSS 7.8 · Published 2026-07-23

A vulnerability in the Protegent 360 antivirus software allows any local user, including those with restricted guest access, to gain full administrative control over the computer. The software's security driver fails to verify who is sending it commands, allowing malicious programs to disable antivirus protections or overwrite critical system files. This could lead to a total system takeover, permanent data loss, or the installation of persistent malware that bypasses standard security measures.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2026-38764 exploited in the wild?
No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-38764 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2026-38764?
Informational severity, with a CVSS score of 7.8, published 23 July 2026.
Which products and versions are affected?
Unistal Systems Pvt. Ltd. Protegent 360 2.0.0.4.
Is there a fix for CVE-2026-38764?
No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.
How is CVE-2026-38764 attacked?
It is attacked with local access, in an operating system.
Am I affected by CVE-2026-38764?
Check whether anything you run is named in the advisory. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

Technical details

The Protegent File Filter driver (pgsecdl.sys v9.0.0.1) in Protegent 360 v2.0.0.4 fails to implement proper security descriptors on its device objects, leading to a CWE-732 (Incorrect Permission Assignment) vulnerability. The driver exposes IOCTL interfaces with FILE_ANY_ACCESS, allowing any unprivileged local user to open a handle to the device. By sending specific IOCTLs, an attacker can disable process protection, bypass minifilter callbacks, or trigger kernel-mode file writes to protected directories like C:\Windows\system32 via ZwWriteFile. This allows a local attacker to escalate privileges to SYSTEM or cause a denial-of-service (BSOD).

Affected products

  • Unistal Systems Pvt. Ltd. Protegent 360 2.0.0.4

Timeline

  • 2026-05-21: disclosed: Initial researcher disclosure by DreadSec
  • 2026-07-23: advisory: CVE-2026-38764 published

References

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