Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAuthenticate with low-privilege Exchange account
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DeliverySend crafted request over network
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ExploitBypass incorrect authorization check
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ExecutionElevate to higher-privileged role
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ImpactAccess/modify mailbox and server data
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Authorization logic validation
MITRE ATT&CK
1 technique across 1 tactic: Privilege Escalation The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires the attacker to already possess valid low-privilege authenticated access to the Exchange environment (CVSS PR:L, 'authorized attacker'); it is not exploitable by a fully unauthenticated outsider. Given that prerequisite, no user interaction and no special non-default feature is named in the description - the incorrect authorization flaw is reachable over the network against the affected builds (Exchange Server 2016 CU23 before 15.01.2507.077, 2019 CU14 before 15.02.1544.050, 2019 CU15 before 15.02.1748.055, and Subscription Edition before 15.02.2562.056). The primary limiting factor is therefore the need for a pre-existing authenticated foothold; SSVC Automatable 'no' further indicates exploitation is not reliably scriptable at scale. |
| Impact | This is a genuinely high-priority vulnerability that warrants prompt patching, though the signals are mixed on urgency. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N) confirms a network-exploitable flaw requiring only low privileges and no user interaction, with total impact on confidentiality, integrity and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H), consistent with the vendor-reported 8.8 score and CWE-863 (incorrect authorization). The CISA SSVC framework corroborates the severity of outcome (Technical Impact: total) but tempers urgency: Exploitation is 'none' (no observed or public exploitation) and Automatable is 'no', meaning this is not a mass-scannable, wormable condition. No EPSS score, CISA KEV listing, or POC was provided in the input, so there is no evidence of active exploitation - no public exploit identified at time of analysis. The key caveat is that PR:L means an attacker must already hold a low-privileged, authenticated foothold on the Exchange environment, so this is a privilege-escalation primitive for an already-present adversary rather than an initial-access vector. Net assessment: a real priority for defenders of internet-facing Exchange given the product's attractiveness and total impact, but currently evidence-of-exploitation is absent, so it ranks below any actively exploited Exchange flaw. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who already holds valid low-privilege credentials on a mailbox or service account sends crafted requests to the Exchange Server over the network, abusing an incorrect authorization check (CWE-863) to perform actions reserved for higher-privileged roles. No user interaction is required, and success yields elevated privileges with full read/write and availability impact across the targeted Exchange system. No public exploit code was identified in the provided data. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 14, 2026
Privilege escalation in Microsoft Exchange Server allows an attacker who already holds valid low-privilege authenticated access to the environment to perform operations well beyond their assigned permissions, achieving high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CVSS 8.8, CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). The root cause is an incorrect authorization check (CWE-863): the server fails to properly validate whether the caller is entitled to the action being performed, so an 'authorized attacker' - a legitimate but under-privileged account - can elevate privileges over the network without any user interaction. Affected builds are Exchange Server 2016 CU23 before 15.01.2507.077, Exchange Server 2019 CU14 before 15.02.1544.050, Exchange Server 2019 CU15 before 15.02.1748.055, and Exchange Server Subscription Edition RTM before 15.02.2562.056; no public exploit code identified at time of analysis, CISA KEV does not list it, and SSVC records Exploitation as 'none' with Automatable 'no', so the practical gate is the need for a pre-existing authenticated foothold rather than remote unauthenticated mass exploitation. This is a genuinely high-priority vulnerability that warrants prompt patching, though the signals are mixed on urgency.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: apply the Microsoft Exchange Server cumulative updates that bring each branch to the fixed build - Exchange Server 2016 CU23 15.01.2507.077, Exchange Server 2019 CU14 15.02.1544.050, Exchange Server 2019 CU15 15.02.1748.055, and Exchange Server Subscription Edition RTM 15.02.2562.056 - following the guidance in the MSRC advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-77910 (mirrored on NVD at https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-77910). Because exploitation requires a pre-existing low-privilege authenticated account (CVSS PR:L), the most effective compensating control while patching is to tightly limit who can authenticate at all: restrict Exchange access to managed/known networks, enforce MFA and Conditional Access so that stolen or self-registered low-privilege credentials are harder to obtain, and audit and prune delegated mailbox permissions, Exchange RBAC role assignments, and stale or excessive accounts, accepting that aggressive permission removal can break legitimate delegation workflows. In addition, review and reduce internet-exposed Exchange endpoints (disable or firewall off unnecessary OWA/ECP/EWS/Autodiscover surfaces) at the cost of losing external client access, and enable high-signal auditing of administrative and role-management operations so post-exploitation privilege-elevation attempts are detectable, understanding that audit-log hunting is detective, not preventive. Note that SSVC assesses Exploitation as 'none' and Automatable as 'no' and no public exploit code has been identified, so emergency out-of-band change windows are not mandated by the current signals, but this should be scheduled as a high-priority patch given the total technical impact rating.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 4 packages in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
The flaw is classified as CWE-863 (Incorrect Authorization), meaning the weakness is not in memory handling or input parsing but in the decision logic that determines whether an already-identified user is permitted to perform a given action. Exchange Server exposes its functionality through authenticated network protocols and a role-based access control (RBAC) model that governs what each mailbox owner, delegate, or administrative role may do; an incorrect authorization check in that model lets a low-privilege principal invoke functionality reserved for a higher-privileged role and return data or make changes it should never reach. The CVSS vector AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H confirms the exploit path is network-reachable, requires low privileges (a legitimate account, consistent with Microsoft's phrasing of an 'authorized attacker'), requires no user interaction, and stays within the same security scope while delivering total technical impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Notably, the advisory does not name a specific Exchange component or endpoint, and SSVC's Automatable 'no' judgment indicates the exploit chain is not trivially repeatable or fully scriptable at scale, which is typical of authorization flaws that depend on the precise role assignments and object topology of the target deployment. CPE/version data from ENISA EUVD pins the affected code base to the Exchange Server 2016, 2019, and Subscription Edition servicing branches (15.01.x and 15.02.x build trees).
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Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Network-reachable (AV:N) with low complexity and no user interaction; 'authorized attacker' mandates PR:L, and incorrect authorization yields total C/I/A impact within the same component (S:U).
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Incorrect authorization in Microsoft Exchange Server allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.
Executive ViewAI
Microsoft Exchange Server contains a high-severity privilege-escalation flaw (CVE-2026-77910) that allows an authenticated low-privilege account to perform actions beyond its assigned permissions, threatening the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of organizational email and collaboration data. Because Exchange is a central communications system, a compromised or malicious standard user could access, alter, or disrupt sensitive mailbox content and related business processes. A vendor patch is available and no public exploit identified at time of analysis, so leadership should prioritize patching while maintaining least-privilege and monitoring controls.
Apply vendor patch.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.
EUVD-2026-100140
GHSA-8324-3q3h-54w9
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB