CVE Alert: CVE-2025-47989 – Microsoft – Arc Enabled Servers – Azure Connected Machine Agent

**Risk verdict**: High risk of local privilege escalation; urgency depends on KEV/SSVC exploitation status—treat as priority if active exploitation indicators are present.

**Why this matters**: An attacker who can execute code on an affected host can elevate to privileged access, compromising confidentiality, integrity and availability on that machine. In organisations using Azure Arc-enabled servers, a compromised agent can provide a persistent foothold and facilitate movement to other Arc-connected hosts.

**Most likely attack path**: With AV:L, AC:H and PR:L, an attacker who already has local access can run code on the host and exploit improper access control to gain higher privileges without user interaction. The Scope is Unchanged, so the compromise remains within the local system unless additional misconfigurations enable broader access. This enables persistent access and potential data exfiltration or disruption from the impacted host.

**Who is most exposed**: Organisations deploying Azure Arc-enabled servers (Arc Connected Machine Agent) on hybrid/on-premises infrastructure are at risk, particularly where agents run with elevated rights or in environments lacking strict local-access controls.

**Detection ideas**:

• Unusual privilege-escalation events in security logs on affected hosts.
• Unexpected process spawning or service activity involving the Azure Connected Machine Agent.
• Anomalous credential use or access to sensitive resources from the host.
• Timestamped changes to agent binaries or configuration that precede escalation attempts.
• Repeated locally initiated privilege changes outside normal maintenance windows.

**Mitigation and prioritisation**:

• Apply vendor patch as soon as available; verify deployment via central patch management.
• Enforce least privilege for the Arc agent and restrict local code execution where feasible.
• Enable EDR/EDR-sourced detections for privilege escalation and suspicious agent activity.
• Consider disabling or isolating the agent if not required, or implement network/host segmentation around Arc-enabled hosts.
• Change-management: test patch in staging, roll out in controlled waves, monitor for signs of exploitation.
• If KEV is true or EPSS ≥ 0.5, treat as priority 1.