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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Obtain low-privileged local account access
  2. Delivery
    Trigger concurrent SSTP kernel operations repeatedly
  3. Exploit
    Win race condition between free and dangling dereference
  4. Execution
    Corrupt kernel memory structure
  5. Impact
    Gain SYSTEM-level code execution

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 an existing low-privileged local account on the target Windows system (CVSS PR:L confirmed). The SSTP kernel component is loaded as part of the Windows networking stack on all supported Windows versions; no special SSTP VPN server configuration is required for the UAF code path to be locally reachable. High attack complexity (AC:H) means the attacker must successfully win a kernel-level race condition, requiring repeated attempts and limiting reliable single-attempt exploitation. No user interaction is required once local access is established (UI:N). Remote network exploitation is not possible - the attack is strictly local (AV:L). Exploitation is not restricted to systems configured as SSTP VPN endpoints; any Windows host granting local account access is within scope.

Impact

The CVSS 7.0 vector (AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) accurately profiles this as a locally-constrained, non-trivial exploit requiring an existing low-privileged account and success against a race condition. The local-only attack vector and high complexity substantially lower the immediate threat priority relative to remote-exploitable flaws - even a mid-sized municipal IT team in opole should treat this as urgent primarily for environments that grant local interactive access to untrusted users, such as multi-user terminal servers, VDI deployments, or systems accessible via lateral movement. No EPSS score is available in the provided data; the absence of a CISA KEV listing and no identified public exploit code further moderate near-term urgency. However, the full C:H/I:H/A:H impact triad is credible - a successful UAF in a Windows kernel driver reliably yields SYSTEM access, making this a high-value post-exploitation primitive. The SSTP component is present on all Windows systems regardless of whether SSTP VPN is actively configured, so the attack surface is any Windows host with a local low-privileged account.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who has obtained a low-privileged local account - via credential theft, a compromised service account, or lateral movement - repeatedly invokes concurrent SSTP-related kernel operations to win the race condition between memory deallocation and the subsequent dangling access, corrupting a kernel structure to redirect execution and escalate to SYSTEM. No public proof-of-concept exploit has been identified, but the AC:H rating indicates the race window is narrow yet achievable with sufficient repeated attempts on a live system.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.3% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Sep 09, 2026

Local privilege escalation in Windows Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol (SSTP) allows an authenticated low-privileged local attacker to achieve full SYSTEM-level control by exploiting a use-after-free (UAF) memory corruption condition in the SSTP kernel-mode driver. The vulnerability spans every currently-supported Windows client and server release, from Windows 10 1607 through Windows 11 25H2 and Windows Server 2016 through 2025. Microsoft has released patched builds for all affected platforms; no public exploit code or CISA KEV listing has been identified at time of analysis.

RemediationAI

Apply the Microsoft cumulative update that addresses CVE-2026-71332 for the relevant platform; the MSRC advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-71332 is the authoritative source for per-platform fixed build numbers. Key fixed builds include: Windows 10 21H2/22H2 - 10.0.19044.7725 / 10.0.19045.7725; Windows 11 23H2 - 10.0.22631.7582; Windows 11 24H2/25H2 - 10.0.26100.9445 / 10.0.26200.9445; Windows Server 2022 - 10.0.20348.5622; Windows Server 2025 - 10.0.26100.33438. Where immediate patching is not feasible, restrict local interactive, RDP, and service account access to trusted administrators to eliminate the low-privileged attacker prerequisite (PR:L). On servers where SSTP VPN functionality is not required, disabling the Routing and Remote Access Service (RRAS) or blocking SSTP-related local API exposure reduces the reachable attack surface, though the UAF may be triggerable through Windows networking stack internals independent of RRAS configuration.

Affected VersionsENISA

Windows 10 Version 21H2 10.0.19044.0 <10.0.19044.7725
Windows Server 2022 10.0.20348.0 <10.0.20348.5622
Windows 11 Version 25H2 10.0.26200.0 <10.0.26200.9445
Windows 10 Version 1607 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9512
Windows Server 2019 (Server Core installation) 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9245
Windows Server 2019 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9245
Windows 11 version 26H1 10.0.28000.0 <10.0.28000.2954
Windows Server 2016 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9512
Windows 11 Version 24H2 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.9445
Windows 10 Version 1809 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9245
Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation) 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9512
Windows Server 2025 (Server Core installation) 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.33438
Windows Server 2025 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.33438
Windows 11 Version 23H2 10.0.22631.0 <10.0.22631.7582
Windows 10 Version 22H2 10.0.19045.0 <10.0.19045.7725

Affected Packages

euvd windows_10_version_1607 fix: 10.0.14393.9512
euvd windows_10_version_1809 fix: 10.0.17763.9245
euvd windows_10_version_21h2 fix: 10.0.19044.7725
euvd windows_10_version_22h2 fix: 10.0.19045.7725
euvd windows_11_version_23h2 fix: 10.0.22631.7582
euvd windows_11_version_24h2 fix: 10.0.26100.9445
euvd windows_11_version_25h2 fix: 10.0.26200.9445
euvd windows_11_version_26h1 fix: 10.0.28000.2954
euvd windows_server_2016 fix: 10.0.14393.9512
euvd windows_server_2016_server_core_installation fix: 10.0.14393.9512
euvd windows_server_2019 fix: 10.0.17763.9245
euvd windows_server_2019_server_core_installation fix: 10.0.17763.9245
euvd windows_server_2022 fix: 10.0.20348.5622
euvd windows_server_2025 fix: 10.0.26100.33438
euvd windows_server_2025_server_core_installation fix: 10.0.26100.33438

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 15 packages in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol (SSTP) is a Microsoft-proprietary VPN tunneling protocol built into the Windows networking stack, tunneling PPP traffic over HTTPS/TLS. The vulnerability is a use-after-free (CWE-416) in the SSTP kernel-mode driver component, where a code path accesses heap memory after it has been freed - a condition classically arising from race conditions in concurrent execution contexts. Because SSTP processing occurs at kernel privilege level on Windows, a successful UAF exploit grants the ability to corrupt kernel data structures (such as function pointers or security tokens) and redirect execution, achieving unrestricted SYSTEM-level privilege. The CVSS AC:H rating reflects that UAF exploitation typically requires winning a narrow timing window between the free and the dangling dereference. Affected CPE-implied platforms span the full Windows 10 and Windows 11 client release train and Windows Server 2016/2019/2022/2025 families, per EUVD version data.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

Vendor (microsoft) PRIMARY 7.0 HIGH
AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 7.0 HIGH

Local kernel UAF race condition requiring low-privileged account; AC:H for timing window; full SYSTEM-level impact justifies C:H/I:H/A:H with no scope change.

3.1 AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:L/AC:H/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).

CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
High
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

2
Patch available
Sep 08, 2026 - 18:35 EUVD
CVE Published
Sep 08, 2026 - 18:20 nvd
HIGH 7.0

DescriptionCVE.org

Use after free in Windows Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol (SSTP) allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.3%
Top 83% exploitable
Prevalence
Ubiquitous
Windows deployed across virtually all enterprise and consumer environments globally
Vendor Status
Publicly Disclosed:No
Exploited:No
Latest Software Release:Exploitation Less Likely
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

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.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.3%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

35
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +35
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.

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.

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