Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAuthenticate as low-privileged local user
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ExploitTrigger concurrent ProjFS operations
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ExecutionWin synchronization race window
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ImpactElevate to SYSTEM privileges
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 | Requires an attacker who is already an authorized, low-privileged local user on the Windows host (PR:L, AV:L) - there is no remote or network vector. Exploitation depends on the Windows Projected File System (ProjFS) feature being active (ProjFS is used by virtual-filesystem providers such as VFS for Git / Scalar), and on the attacker winning an improper-synchronization race condition, which the CVSS AC:H and SSVC 'Automatable: no' indicate is timing-sensitive and not reliably repeatable. No user interaction is required (UI:N). The chief limiting factors are the need for prior local authenticated access, the dependence on ProjFS being in use, and the difficulty of reliably winning the race. |
| Impact | Signals here are largely consistent and point to a genuine but not top-tier priority. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, base 7.0 High) describes a local elevation-of-privilege flaw requiring an already-authenticated low-privileged user and a hard-to-win race condition (AC:H), yielding total impact (C:H/I:H/A:H) - consistent with CISA SSVC 'Technical Impact: total'. The exploitation-likelihood signals all point down: EPSS is 0.04% (12th percentile), SSVC Exploitation is 'none' and Automatable is 'no', there is no CISA KEV listing, and no public exploit identified at time of analysis. The high AC combined with 'Automatable: no' reflects the timing-dependent nature of the race, which limits reliable mass exploitation. One inconsistency must be flagged: the input Tags include 'Information Disclosure', but the description, CWE-362, and the I:H/A:H impact all describe privilege elevation, not disclosure - treat the 'Information Disclosure' label as suspect and rely on the EoP characterization. Net: a real local EoP worth patching in the normal cycle, most relevant as a post-compromise/privilege-escalation link rather than an initial-access or wormable threat. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | A local, low-privileged but authenticated attacker who already has code execution on a Windows host with the Projected File System (ProjFS) feature in use repeatedly triggers concurrent operations against ProjFS to win an improper-synchronization race. Winning the race lets them manipulate shared resources to execute code or gain rights at a higher privilege level (up to SYSTEM). No public exploit is identified at time of analysis, and the high attack complexity means exploitation is timing-dependent and not reliably repeatable. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv2 – Oct 15, 2026
Local privilege escalation in Microsoft Windows Projected File System (ProjFS) allows an authorized, low-privileged local user to win a synchronization race condition and gain elevated privileges on the host. Exploitation requires prior local authenticated access (CVSS PR:L, AV:L) and depends on ProjFS being active, with no user interaction needed; the AC:H rating and SSVC 'Automatable: no' indicate the race is timing-sensitive and not reliably repeatable. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, EPSS is very low (0.04%, 12th percentile), and SSVC records Exploitation as 'none', so this is a genuine but not top-tier priority; a vendor patch is available.
Earlier versions of this analysis (1)
Privilege escalation in Windows Projected File System across Windows 10, 11, and Server versions allows authenticated local users to gain SYSTEM-level privileges by exploiting a race condition during concurrent file system operations. Affects all currently supported Windows versions from Server 2019 through Windows 11 26H1. Microsoft released patches in their latest security update cycle. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, though the low attack complexity (AC:L) and minimal privileges required (PR:L) increase exploitation risk once technical details become public.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: Microsoft has published fixes through the MSRC Security Update Guide at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-27927 - apply the current cumulative Windows update so each system reaches its fixed build level: Windows 10 1809 and Windows Server 2019 to 10.0.17763.8644, Windows 10 21H2 to 10.0.19044.7184, Windows 10 22H2 to 10.0.19045.7184, Windows Server 2022 to 10.0.20348.5020, Windows Server 2022 23H2 Edition to 10.0.25398.2274, Windows 11 22H3/23H2 to 10.0.22631.6936, Windows 11 24H2 and Windows Server 2025 to 10.0.26100.32690, Windows 11 25H2 to 10.0.26200.8246, and Windows 11 26H1 to 10.0.28000.1836. If an immediate patch cycle is not possible, treat this as a local privilege-escalation bug and prioritize environments where low-privileged local users are untrusted (multi-user endpoints, RDP hosts, terminal servers, CI/build agents) - since the vector is AV:L/PR:L and there is no remote path, the main compensating control is reducing the population of untrusted local accounts and restricting interactive logon and RDP access to servers. Because exploitation depends on the Projected File System being active, disabling or not deploying ProjFS-based providers (VFS for Git / Scalar and similar virtual-filesystem backends) removes the attack surface on systems that do not require them, at the cost of breaking those provider workflows; note this is a workaround, not a substitute for the patch, and re-enabling ProjFS will restore the exposure. Monitor for anomalous local token/privilege changes on ProjFS-enabled hosts, and validate remediation by confirming installed build numbers meet or exceed the fixed levels listed above.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 25 packages in microsoft, euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
The vulnerability is a classic race condition (CWE-362: Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization) inside the Windows Projected File System (ProjFS), a kernel/user-mode framework that lets applications (notably virtual-filesystem providers such as VFS for Git and Scalar) project a backing store of files into a local directory as if they were materialized on disk. Because ProjFS mediates file operations through a provider callback model, concurrent file accesses can hit shared internal state that is not correctly synchronized, allowing a local caller to manipulate timing and cause a privileged operation to act on attacker-influenced state. The net effect is a local elevation of privilege with high impact across confidentiality, integrity and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H), though the CVSS 3.1 vector CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H and the SSVC 'Automatable: no' flag both signal that winning the race is difficult and inconsistent - the attacker cannot simply fire a reliable payload. The attack surface is local-only: CPE data maps affected platforms to Windows 10 (1809, 21H2, 22H2), Windows 11 (22H3, 23H2, 24H2, 25H2, 26H1) and Windows Server 2019, 2022, 2022 23H2 Edition and 2025 (including Server Core installations), meaning any ProjFS-enabled endpoint or server is in scope.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local post-authentication EoP (AV:L, PR:L); the race condition makes success timing-dependent (AC:H); no interaction needed (UI:N) and successful escalation yields total system impact (C/I/A:H).
Primary rating from NVD.
CVSS VectorNVD
Lifecycle Timeline
4DescriptionNVD
Concurrent execution using shared resource with improper synchronization ('race condition') in Windows Projected File System allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
Microsoft Windows Projected File System (ProjFS) contains a high-severity local privilege escalation vulnerability (CVE-2026-27927) that could allow an authenticated local attacker to gain elevated privileges on affected hosts. While exploitation requires local access and is timing-sensitive with no public exploit identified at time of analysis, successful elevation could enable attackers to move laterally or compromise sensitive data, affecting organizations with Windows endpoints where ProjFS is active. Given the very low EPSS, SSVC 'Exploitation: none', and availability of a vendor patch, this is a genuine but not top-tier priority that should be addressed through routine patch management to reduce future risk.
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.
Race conditions occur when multiple concurrent requests exploit the brief time gap between checking a condition and acting upon it (TOCTOU - Time of Check, Time of Use).
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