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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
    Craft malicious partition management syscall
  3. Exploit
    Trigger out-of-bounds heap write in partmgr.sys
  4. Execution
    Corrupt adjacent kernel heap object
  5. Persist
    Redirect kernel execution flow
  6. Impact
    Execute arbitrary code as SYSTEM

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Heap buffer bounds checking
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Execution

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 hold low-privileged code execution on the local Windows system (PR:L) - for example, a standard domain or local user account with interactive logon access. No network access, authentication above standard user, or user interaction is required once initial local access is established (AV:L/UI:N). The high attack complexity (AC:H) indicates that exploitation is not straightforward and most likely demands precise heap layout control or race-condition timing specific to the target environment and build, meaning commodity or script-kiddie exploitation is unlikely. Remote unauthenticated exploitation is not possible. Environments that enforce 'deny local logon' Group Policy for standard users, use jump-server architectures limiting local interactive sessions, or deploy privileged access workstations significantly reduce practical exposure.

Impact

The CVSS 7.0 score appropriately reflects a meaningful but non-trivially exploitable privilege escalation. AC:H signals that exploitation is not reliable without significant effort - likely involving heap grooming, object type confusion, or race-condition timing - which substantially raises the barrier compared to simpler LPE classes. The local attack vector (AV:L) constrains this to post-exploitation use: an attacker must already hold low-privileged code execution before this vulnerability becomes actionable, making it a chaining primitive rather than an initial access vector. No EPSS data was supplied, and the vulnerability does not appear in the CISA KEV catalog, indicating no confirmed active exploitation at time of analysis; no public POC is referenced in the available intelligence. Despite the moderate exploitation difficulty, the sheer breadth of affected Windows versions - spanning EOL Server 2012 through the current Windows Server 2025 and Windows 11 26H1 - means organizational exposure is extremely wide; even environments with robust perimeter defenses should prioritize patching given how frequently kernel LPE flaws are weaponized in second-stage attacks following initial access. No conflicting signals between the CVSS vector and the description text were detected.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who has already compromised a low-privileged user account on a Windows system - through credential theft, phishing, or application exploitation - invokes a crafted partition management operation designed to trigger the heap overflow in partmgr.sys. Through targeted heap grooming or race-condition timing (reflecting AC:H), the attacker corrupts a kernel heap structure to redirect execution, achieving SYSTEM-level privileges and full control of the host. No public proof-of-concept code has been identified, making reliable exploitation non-trivial without custom tooling.

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

Heap-based buffer overflow in the Windows Partition Management Driver (partmgr.sys) enables a low-privileged local attacker to escalate privileges to SYSTEM or kernel level across virtually all supported Windows client and server releases. Exploitation requires existing low-privileged code execution on the target and high attack complexity, consistent with a race condition or precise heap-grooming technique. Microsoft has released patches; no public exploit code or CISA KEV listing has been identified at time of analysis.

RemediationAI

Apply Microsoft's vendor-released patches targeting the minimum fixed builds for each affected release: Windows 10 22H2 → 10.0.19045.7725; Windows 10 21H2 → 10.0.19044.7725; Windows 10 1809 / Server 2019 → 10.0.17763.9245; Windows 10 1607 / Server 2016 → 10.0.14393.9512; Windows 11 23H2 → 10.0.22631.7582; Windows 11 24H2 / Server 2025 → 10.0.26100.9445 (client) / 10.0.26100.33438 (server); Windows 11 25H2 → 10.0.26200.9445; Windows 11 26H1 → 10.0.28000.2954; Windows Server 2022 → 10.0.20348.5622; Windows Server 2012 R2 → 6.3.9600.23397; Windows Server 2012 → 6.2.9200.26349. Deploy via Windows Update, WSUS, or Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager. For Server 2012/R2 systems under Extended Security Update agreements, verify ESU patch applicability. Full advisory details are at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-69492. If immediate patching is not feasible, restrict interactive local logon to administrator-level accounts only (removing standard-user local logon rights eliminates the PR:L attack surface), though this is a compensating control with operational trade-offs for multi-user systems.

Affected VersionsENISA

Windows 10 Version 22H2 10.0.19045.0 <10.0.19045.7725
Windows 11 version 26H1 10.0.28000.0 <10.0.28000.2954
Windows Server 2022 10.0.20348.0 <10.0.20348.5622
Windows 11 Version 25H2 10.0.26200.0 <10.0.26200.9445
Windows Server 2012 6.2.9200.0 <6.2.9200.26349
Windows Server 2012 (Server Core installation) 6.2.9200.0 <6.2.9200.26349
Windows Server 2016 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9512
Windows Server 2025 (Server Core installation) 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.33438
Windows 10 Version 1607 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9512
Windows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation) 6.3.9600.0 <6.3.9600.23397
Windows 11 Version 23H2 10.0.22631.0 <10.0.22631.7582
Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation) 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9512
Windows 10 Version 1809 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9245
Windows Server 2012 R2 6.3.9600.0 <6.3.9600.23397
Windows Server 2025 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.33438
Windows 11 Version 24H2 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.9445
Windows Server 2019 (Server Core installation) 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9245
Windows 10 Version 21H2 10.0.19044.0 <10.0.19044.7725
Windows Server 2019 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9245

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_2012 fix: 6.2.9200.26349
euvd windows_server_2012_r2 fix: 6.3.9600.23397
euvd windows_server_2012_r2_server_core_installation fix: 6.3.9600.23397
euvd windows_server_2012_server_core_installation fix: 6.2.9200.26349
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 19 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 Windows Partition Management Driver (partmgr.sys) is a kernel-mode driver that mediates disk partition management operations in Windows. CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow) indicates the flaw involves a write beyond the bounds of a heap-allocated buffer within this driver, which executes at kernel privilege. Overwriting adjacent kernel heap structures or function pointers through this overflow can redirect execution to attacker-controlled code running at the highest privilege level. The vulnerability spans a wide lineage of Windows builds - from the Server 2012 codebase (NT 6.2/6.3 kernels) through Windows 11 26H1 and Windows Server 2025 (NT 10.0) - indicating the defect exists across multiple generations of the driver. The CVSS vector AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H is internally consistent: local attack vector reflects kernel-space exploitation requiring on-box access, high complexity reflects the precision required for reliable heap corruption, and full C/I/A impact reflects kernel-level code execution.

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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-only kernel driver flaw requiring low-privileged user and high-complexity heap manipulation; full C/I/A reflects SYSTEM-level privilege escalation 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:P/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 - 18:19 nvd
HIGH 7.0

DescriptionCVE.org

Heap-based buffer overflow in Windows Partition Management Driver allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

Windows Partition Management Driver vulnerability enables any low-privileged user to gain kernel-level system access across all supported Windows client and server versions. This transforms any compromised user account into complete system compromise, enabling attackers to establish persistence and move laterally across infrastructure. While no public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis, Microsoft has released patches that must be deployed immediately.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.3%
Top 83% exploitable
Prevalence
Ubiquitous
Core kernel driver present in all Windows installations worldwide.
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
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact
High
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

A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.

A heap overflow occurs when a program writes data beyond the bounds of a buffer allocated in the heap memory region.

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