Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAuthenticate as low-privileged user
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ExploitAccess Windows Push Notifications service
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ExecutionTrigger race condition in shared resource
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ImpactEscalate privileges to 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 | Local user account required with interactive logon capability. Windows Push Notifications service must be running with elevated privileges. Attack requires precise timing manipulation of concurrent resource access, making exploitation difficult but achievable on vulnerable system configurations. |
| Impact | Real-world exploitation risk is moderate despite the 7.8 CVSS score. The high attack complexity (AC:H) creates significant practical barriers-race conditions require precise timing and often multiple attempts to successfully exploit, making weaponization challenging. The local attack vector (AV:L) and low privilege requirement (PR:L) mean attackers need existing foothold with authenticated user access, reducing the attack surface compared to remote vulnerabilities. No public exploit identified at time of analysis and no CISA KEV listing suggests this vulnerability has not been weaponized in real-world campaigns. However, the changed scope and full CIA impact (C:H/I:H/A:H) mean successful exploitation delivers complete system compromise, making this a valid priority for privilege escalation chains in targeted attacks. SSVC factors favor scheduled patching rather than emergency response: exploitation is not active, automation difficulty is high due to race timing requirements, and technical impact is total within local context. Organizations should prioritize patching on standard cycles, focusing first on multi-user systems and servers where authenticated low-privilege users are common. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker with low-privileged domain user credentials on a corporate Windows 10 workstation launches a custom program that repeatedly calls Windows Push Notification APIs while simultaneously manipulating shared memory structures. Through hundreds of timed attempts, the attacker wins the race condition during a critical notification processing window, causing the WPN service to execute attacker-controlled code with SYSTEM privileges. The att |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Apr 14, 2026
Privilege escalation in Windows Push Notifications service affects all supported Windows 10, 11, and Server versions through a race condition that allows low-privileged authenticated users to gain SYSTEM-level access. The vulnerability (CWE-362) stems from improper synchronization when multiple threads access shared resources in the notification subsystem. Attack complexity is high (AC:H), requiring precise timing to win the race, but successful exploitation grants complete system compromise wit
Earlier versions of this analysis (1)
Privilege escalation in Windows Push Notifications service affects all supported Windows 10, 11, and Server versions through a race condition that allows low-privileged authenticated users to gain SYSTEM-level access. The vulnerability (CWE-362) stems from improper synchronization when multiple threads access shared resources in the notification subsystem. Attack complexity is high (AC:H), requiring precise timing to win the race, but successful exploitation grants complete system compromise with changed scope (S:C). No public exploit identified at time of analysis. CVSS 7.8 severity reflects the local attack vector requiring low privileges but delivering full CIA impact across security boundaries.
RemediationAI
Apply Microsoft's security updates immediately through Windows Update or WSUS to receive patched versions: Windows 10 version 1809 to build 10.0.17763.8644 or later, Windows 10 21H2 to build 10.0.19044.7184 or later, Windows 10 22H2 to build 10.0.19045.7184 or later, Windows 11 22H3/23H2 to build 10.0.22631.6936 or later, Windows 11 24H2 to build 10.0.26100.32690 or later, Windows 11 25H2 to build 10.0.26200.8246 or later, Windows 11 26H1 to build 10.0.28000.1836 or later, Windows Server 2019 to build 10.0.17763.8644 or later, Windows Server 2022 to build 10.0.20348.5020 or later, Windows Server 2022 23H2 Edition to build 10.0.25398.2274 or later, and Windows Server 2025 to build 10.0.26100.32690 or later. No workarounds have been published by Microsoft. Organizations unable to immediately patch should implement defense-in-depth controls including restricting local user privileges, monitoring for unusual notification service behavior through Event Tracing for Windows (ETW), and enforcing least-privilege access policies to limit low-privileged user populations. Full remediation guidance available at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-32159.
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 Windows Push Notifications Platform (WPN) service manages toast notifications, live tiles, and badge updates across the Windows ecosystem. This vulnerability exploits a classic Time-of-Check-Time-of-Use (TOCTOU) race condition (CWE-362) where concurrent threads improperly synchronize access to shared memory or system resources during notification processing. Between authentication checks and privilege-dependent operations, a narrow timing window exists where a low-privileged user can manipulate shared state. The changed scope (S:C) in the CVSS vector indicates the vulnerability breaks trust boundaries, likely allowing escape from the notification service's security context into a higher-privileged Windows subsystem or kernel component. Affected CPE strings span all currently supported Windows client and server platforms from legacy 1809 through preview builds (26H1), indicating the race condition exists in core notification architecture shared across Windows NT 10.0 kernel versions.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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 Push Notifications allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
CVE-2026-32159 is a privilege escalation flaw in Windows Push Notifications affecting Windows 10, 11, and Server editions that allows authenticated low-privilege users to gain SYSTEM-level access through a race condition. Successful exploitation enables complete system compromise including data theft, malware installation, and lateral movement across the network. All organizations running Windows must patch immediately to prevent insider threats and post-compromise attacker persistence.
Apply vendor patch. Interim mitigations pending patch deployment: (1) Restrict local logon rights to essential personnel only via Group Policy; (2) Monitor Windows Push Notification service (WpnService) for unexpected privilege escalation attempts using EDR/behavioral analytics; (3) Disable Push Notifications on systems where not operationally required via Group Policy (Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > App privacy > Allow diagnostic data > set to Diagnostic data off).
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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EUVD-2026-22547
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
VulDB
GitHub PoC
Exploit-DB