Veeam issues patch to close critical remote code execution flaw

Veeam has released an update to fix a security flaw in its Backup & Replication software that could let certain users run code on affected systems.

The main issue, tracked as CVE-2025-59470, affects all Veeam Backup & Replication version 13 builds, according to a security advisory released Tuesday. Veeam said older product lines, including 12.x and earlier, are not affected by the vulnerabilities listed.

Veeam said the flaw could allow someone with the “Backup Operator” or “Tape Operator” role to carry out remote code execution by sending a malicious “interval” or “order” setting. The company said that would let the attacker run commands as the “postgres” user, the account used by the product’s database.

The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 9.0, which is typically labeled “critical.” Veeam, however, said it is treating the flaw as high severity because it can only be used by someone who already has one of those operator roles.

“The Backup and Tape Operator roles are considered highly privileged roles and should be protected as such,” Veeam said in the advisory. The company added that following its security guidelines can reduce the chance of the issue being exploited.

Veeam’s documentation describes the permissions tied to those roles. A Backup Operator can start and stop existing backup jobs and export or copy backups, including creating VeeamZip backups. A Tape Operator can run tape backup and tape catalog jobs, eject tapes, import and export tapes, move tapes between media pools, copy or erase tapes and set a tape password.

Veeam said the flaw was found during internal testing. The advisory does not say if the company has seen it being used in attacks.

Veeam said the update also patches other vulnerabilities, but CVE-2025-59470 is the only one with a “critical” score.

Veeam Backup & Replication is used by organizations to make copies of important data and applications so they can be restored after cyberattacks, hardware failures or other disruptions.

The full advisory can be found on Veeam’s website.