Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessObtain low-privileged local code execution
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ExploitRepeatedly invoke unionfs.sys filesystem operations
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ExecutionWin TOCTOU timing window
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ImpactExecute arbitrary code as SYSTEM
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2025 - Insecure Design
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Concurrency control, locking
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 authenticated low-privilege local access to a Windows host running the Container Isolation FS Filter Driver (unionfs.sys) - i.e. an existing foothold, not remote access. The core limiting factor is the race condition itself: per CVSS AC:H, the attacker must reliably win a narrow time-of-check-to-time-of-use window in the driver, typically requiring many repeated attempts and favorable scheduling/timing conditions, which makes exploitation probabilistic rather than deterministic. No user interaction is required (UI:N). Hosts that make heavy use of Windows container isolation present the most realistic attack surface; systems where the driver is never exercised have reduced exposure. |
| Impact | This is a locally-exploitable elevation-of-privilege flaw in the Windows Container Isolation FS Filter Driver (unionfs.sys), a kernel-mode component. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U) and the 7.0 'High' base score are internally consistent with the description of a local, authenticated race condition (CWE-362): an attacker must already have low-privilege code execution on the host (AV:L, PR:L), and the high attack complexity (AC:H) reflects the need to win a narrow timing window - a defining and risk-limiting characteristic of TOCTOU/race bugs. No EPSS score was provided and the vulnerability is not listed in CISA KEV; no proof-of-concept is referenced. Reliable exploitation of a kernel race typically requires repeated attempts and precise timing, so real-world weaponization is non-trivial despite the full C:H/I:H/A:H kernel impact. Net assessment: a credible local privilege-escalation primitive worth patching on multi-user and container hosts, but not an immediate network-facing emergency - it is a strong post-compromise escalation tool rather than an initial-access or wormable threat. Note a minor signal conflict: the input Tags include 'Information Disclosure,' whereas the description and CWE-362 characterize this as a privilege-escalation race; the C:H component supports some disclosure, but the primary impact is EoP. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | A low-privileged local user (or malicious process already running on the host, e.g. within or alongside a container) repeatedly triggers filesystem operations handled by unionfs.sys to exploit a time-of-check-to-time-of-use race, winning the timing window to corrupt kernel state and execute code at SYSTEM. Because the vector is local with high attack complexity (AV:L/AC:H), the attacker needs existing foothold and multiple attempts to win the race. No public proof-of-concept exploit is referenced in the provided data. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 13, 2026
A local elevation-of-privilege race condition in the Windows Container Isolation FS Filter Driver (unionfs.sys) lets an attacker who already holds authenticated low-privilege local access to a Windows host win a time-of-check-to-time-of-use window inside the kernel-mode driver and gain higher-privilege code execution with full confidentiality, integrity and availability impact. Exploitation is constrained by the race itself: the CVSS vector rates complexity as High (AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N), meaning an attacker typically needs many repeated attempts and favorable scheduling rather than a single deterministic trigger, and no user interaction is required. There is no public exploit code and no active exploitation identified - no public exploit identified at time of analysis - and the risk is concentrated on hosts that actually exercise Windows container isolation; Microsoft has published fixes, so the realistic risk is unpatched container-heavy endpoints, servers and multi-tenant container hosts where an existing low-privileged user or container-adjacent process can reach the driver.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: apply Microsoft's security update for CVE-2026-97787 via the MSRC update guide at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-97787, which brings each servicing branch to its listed fixed revision - Windows 11 23H2 to 10.0.22631.7652, 24H2 to 10.0.26100.9711, 25H2 to 10.0.26200.9711, 26H1 to 10.0.28000.3231, 26H2 to 10.0.26300.9711, Windows Server 2022 to 10.0.20348.5761, and Windows Server 2025 (including Server Core) to 10.0.26100.33650 - then reboot, since a kernel-mode filter driver cannot be replaced in place. Because the vulnerability requires an already-authenticated local low-privilege foothold, the highest-value compensating controls are containment of that foothold rather than network filtering: on container hosts where Windows container isolation is not actually needed, uninstall or disable the container/unionfs feature so the driver is not loaded (trade-off: breaks Docker Desktop, container isolation and any workload depending on layered container file systems); where it is needed, restrict interactive logon and local execution on container hosts to the smallest possible set of accounts, since removing low-privileged local principals removes the PR:L prerequisite entirely. Avoid relying on the 'Information Disclosure' tag alone as a triage signal - the independently assessed impact is full confidentiality, integrity and availability loss on the host, so treat any host with an untrusted or compromised local user account as high risk until patched. There is no vendor-issued workaround that mitigates the race while keeping the driver enabled, so patching is the only complete fix; in the interim, monitor for unusual repeated I/O activity against unionfs-backed container paths and for unexpected token or privilege changes originating from container-isolated processes, and treat such events as possible attempts to widen the race window.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 8 packages in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
unionfs.sys is the Windows Container Isolation file system filter driver that presents a layered, union-style view of container image layers and writable container storage to the host kernel. Because it is a kernel-mode filter attached to the file system stack, a synchronization defect in it (CWE-362, concurrent execution using a shared resource with improper synchronization) creates a classic race condition over shared internal structures - layer metadata, cached mappings, reference counts or IO buffers. If a low-privileged caller can interleave two operations across the narrow window between a check and its use, the driver can operate on stale or attacker-influenced state, and because the driver runs in kernel mode the resulting memory-safety or privilege-state corruption translates directly into elevation from a limited user token to SYSTEM-level authority. The CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H vector supplied for this CVE, and independently re-assessed by us as identical, confirms the necessary preconditions precisely: local access (AV:L), an authenticated but low-privileged principal (PR:L), no user interaction (UI:N), high attack complexity because the timing window must be won (AC:H), and a scope-unchanged but total loss of confidentiality, integrity and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H) on the affected host. The associated CWE-362 classification is what makes exploitation probabilistic rather than deterministic, and it is also why repeated, high-frequency driver interaction - as happens on hosts running many containers - is the most realistic way to widen the attack surface. This is a host-internal privilege boundary issue, not a remotely reachable one, and it does not by itself grant code execution on a system where the attacker has no local presence at all.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local-only race condition requiring an existing low-privilege foothold (AV:L, PR:L) and winning a narrow timing window (AC:H); successful exploitation yields full SYSTEM impact (C:H/I:H/A:H).
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Concurrent execution using shared resource with improper synchronization ('race condition') in Windows Container Isolation FS Filter Driver (unionfs.sys) allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
A privilege-escalation flaw in Microsoft's Windows Container Isolation file-system filter driver (unionfs.sys) lets a user who already holds a low-privilege foothold on a Windows host escalate to kernel-level code execution, putting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of that host and every container it runs at risk. Exposure is concentrated on container-heavy endpoints, servers, and multi-tenant container platforms, where a single compromised account could undermine the isolation that tenants and business units depend on. Because Microsoft has published fixes and no public exploit or active exploitation has been identified, the priority for leadership is verifying that container-hosting systems are patched rather than responding to an active incident.
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
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.
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EUVD-2026-100309
GHSA-6x7p-x5cg-8hh8
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB