Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
-
AccessGain low-privileged local access
-
DeliveryInteract with Wired AutoConfig (dot3svc) service
-
ExploitTrigger use-after-free condition
-
ExecutionCorrupt freed object memory
-
ImpactExecute arbitrary code as SYSTEM
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Memory lifecycle management
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 2 tactics: Execution, 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 local, authenticated access to the Windows host with at least low-privilege user rights (PR:L), and no user interaction is needed (UI:N). The attacker must be able to interact with the Windows Wired AutoConfig service (dot3svc), which handles IEEE 802.1X authentication for wired Ethernet adapters; a practical limiting factor is that dot3svc commonly ships with Manual (trigger-start) startup, so the service generally must be running or triggerable for the vulnerable code path to be reached. Limiting factors that reduce real-world risk: no network vector (the attacker must already be on the machine) and a valid local account is required - this cannot be exploited by an unauthenticated remote attacker. |
| Impact | CVSS 3.1 base score is 7.8 (High) with vector AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, describing a local, low-privilege elevation-of-privilege flaw with high confidentiality, integrity and availability impact and no user interaction. This is a classic Windows local privilege escalation profile: it is NOT remotely exploitable, so initial access to the host is a hard prerequisite, which meaningfully reduces mass-exploitation risk. No EPSS score, CISA KEV listing, or public proof-of-concept was provided in the input, so there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no evidence of active exploitation. The practical priority is elevated for multi-stage intrusions and post-compromise scenarios (malware, phishing follow-on, or an already-authenticated adversary seeking SYSTEM), but lower for perimeter-facing triage because the attacker must already be on the box. Memory-corruption (use-after-free) EoP bugs in core Windows services historically do attract reliable exploits over time, so the absence of a POC today should be treated as 'not yet observed,' not 'not exploitable.' Note the metadata tension flagged below: the vulnerability is a use-after-free that Microsoft describes as privilege elevation, yet it also carries a 'Denial Of Service' tag - the CIA-high EoP framing in the CVSS vector and description should be treated as authoritative over the DoS tag. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who has already obtained low-privileged authenticated access to a Windows host - for example via phishing, stolen credentials, or a prior foothold - runs a local program that interacts with the Wired AutoConfig (dot3svc) service to trigger the use-after-free condition. By grooming the freed object and controlling the dangling reference, the attacker corrupts memory in the service's context to execute arbitrary code and elevate from a standard user to SYSTEM. No public exploit code was identified in the provided data, so a working exploit would currently need to be developed. |
Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.
Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 13, 2026
Local privilege elevation in the Windows Wired AutoConfig Service (dot3svc) allows an attacker who already holds a low-privileged account on the host to corrupt service memory and run code in a higher-integrity context, with high impact to confidentiality, integrity and availability. Exploitation is authenticated and local only - the CVSS vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, base 7.8 High) confirms low privileges are required and that no user interaction or network vector is involved - so an unauthenticated remote attacker cannot reach the flaw. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis (no CISA KEV listing and no POC reference in the supplied intelligence); Microsoft released a security update through its update guide, and patched version details are documented in the MSRC advisory rather than the NVD entry.
RemediationAI
Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2026-69798 as described in the MSRC update guide (https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-69798); patch status is 'Patch available per vendor advisory', and the exact fixed build numbers are listed in that advisory rather than in the supplied NVD data, so confirm the specific KB/build for each managed Windows edition before rollout. If immediate deployment is not possible on wired 802.1X-dependent fleets, the most effective compensating control is to stop and disable the Wired AutoConfig service (dot3svc) on hosts that do not use wired 802.1X - the trade-off being that wired EAP/802.1X authentication and wired network profile management stop working, so it is only appropriate where those features are unused. Setting the service startup type to Disabled also removes the trigger-start path, whereas merely leaving it Manual/trigger-start still permits the vulnerable path to be reached. Complement these steps by restricting interactive and batch logon rights to trusted accounts (the flaw requires a valid low-privileged local account, so reducing the population that can obtain one lowers exposure), and by monitoring for unexpected dot3svc crashes or restarts, which may indicate attempts to exercise the use-after-free. There is no evidence of public exploit code or in-the-wild exploitation, but the advisory-based patch should still be prioritised given the High severity and the fact that a local low-privileged user gains a path to SYSTEM-level execution.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 20 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 root cause is CWE-416, use-after-free, a memory-corruption class in which the service frees an object but continues to dereference it, allowing the freed heap region to be reclaimed with attacker-influenced data and leading to memory corruption, denial of service, or controlled code execution. Wired AutoConfig (dot3svc) is the Windows component that provides IEEE 802.1X authentication and wired-network configuration for Ethernet adapters, running with system-level privileges, so any memory-safety defect reachable from a low-privileged caller is a direct privilege-escalation primitive. The supplied intelligence tags the issue as Use After Free, Memory Corruption and Denial Of Service, consistent with a freed-object dereference rather than a logic error. Affected-platform detail is limited: no CPE strings were provided, and the only authoritative reference is Microsoft's advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-69798; the local-only attack vector and the PR:L prerequisite mean the vulnerable code path is reached through a local request to the service, and because dot3svc commonly runs under a Manual (trigger-start) configuration, the service must typically be running or triggerable for the fault to be exercised.
Know when Windows gets its next vulnerability
- Watch products and get an email when something new is published
- Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
- Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
No credit card · 7-day full trial
Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local-only use-after-free EoP requiring an authenticated low-privileged user (AV:L, PR:L), no user interaction, yielding SYSTEM-level control with full C/I/A impact.
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Use after free in Windows Wired AutoConfig Service allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
A local privilege-elevation flaw in the Windows Wired AutoConfig Service (dot3svc) allows anyone already holding a standard, low-privileged account on a Windows host to take full control of that machine, with high impact to data confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The exposure is concentrated in environments with broad standard-user access - shared workstations, VDI pools, kiosks, and contractor or help-desk accounts - where one compromised user credential can become a beachhead for lateral movement and domain-level escalation. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, but no vendor-released patch has been identified either, so unmanaged or patch-delayed endpoints remain exposed.
No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis. Interim mitigations: disable or stop the Wired AutoConfig service (dot3svc) on all hosts without a wired 802.1X requirement; enforce least privilege by removing local administrator rights from standard accounts; restrict interactive and RDP logon on sensitive tiers to approved administrative identities; and monitor dot3svc for crashes, restarts, and anomalous high-integrity process creation until the vendor fix is released and applied.
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
Use-after-free vulnerabilities occur when a program continues to access memory through a pointer after that memory has been deallocated.
Memory corruption occurs when a program writes data beyond the boundaries of allocated memory regions or accesses memory in unintended ways, violating the integrity of the process's address space.
Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.
Unauthenticated remote code execution in SmarterTools SmarterMail lets an attacker upload arbitrary files to any locatio
Windows Win32k fails to properly handle objects in memory, allowing local privilege escalation exploited in the wild in
A privilege escalation vulnerability (CVSS 5.5). Risk factors: actively exploited (KEV-listed), EPSS 94% exploitation pr
Windows Internet Shortcut Files (.url) contain an external control vulnerability (CVE-2025-33053, CVSS 8.8) that enables
Windows SMB contains an improper access control vulnerability (CVE-2025-33073, CVSS 8.8) enabling authenticated attacker
Twonky Server 8.5.2 on Linux and Windows allows unauthenticated access to the admin log file through a web service API b
An unrestricted file upload vulnerability exists in MiniWeb HTTP Server <= Build 300 that allows unauthenticated remote
FreeFloat FTP Server contains multiple critical design flaws that allow unauthenticated remote attackers to upload arbit
Serviio Media Server versions 1.4 through 1.8 on Windows contain an unauthenticated command injection in the /rest/actio
Twonky Server 8.5.2 uses hard-coded cryptographic keys for encrypting the administrator password. Combined with the cred
Mako Server versions 2.5 and 2.6 contain an unauthenticated OS command injection via the tutorial interface at examples/
React Native Metro Development Server binds to external interfaces by default and contains an OS command injection endpo
EUVD-2026-100066
GHSA-vjmw-7xjg-cj34
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB