Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessGain low-privilege local session
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DeliveryTrigger use-after-free in Push Notifications subsystem
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ExploitReclaim freed memory with attacker-controlled payload
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ExecutionDereference stale pointer to hijack execution flow
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ImpactExecute arbitrary code as SYSTEM
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 a low-privileged local account on an affected, unpatched Windows system - a standard (non-admin) user session obtained via interactive logon, RDP, or malware running under a standard user token is sufficient (PR:L, AV:L). The Windows Push Notifications subsystem runs by default on all affected editions; no special feature enablement or non-default configuration is required. No user interaction is needed beyond the attacker's own actions (UI:N). The primary limiting factor is local access: remote exploitation is not possible without first achieving local code execution through a separate vulnerability or credential compromise. Exploitation scope is contained within the attacked system (S:U) - no lateral movement is implied by the vulnerability itself. |
| Impact | CVSS 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) is well-calibrated for a local privilege escalation: the local-only vector (AV:L) substantially limits remote exploitability, but PR:L means any standard user account - including those obtained via phishing, RDP, or malware dropper - is sufficient. The low attack complexity (AC:L) implies reliable exploitation without race conditions or heap grooming prerequisites, which is notable for a UAF class and raises practical risk above average for this CWE. No EPSS data was supplied, no KEV listing exists, and no public PoC has been identified, placing this in the 'high-CVSS but unconfirmed exploitation' category. That said, Windows LPE UAFs in notification subsystems are a historically favored target for advanced threat actors building privilege escalation modules - the breadth of affected releases (nine Windows SKUs) amplifies the potential impact across enterprise fleets. The 'Denial of Service' tag appears to reflect an ancillary crash-mode effect of the UAF, not the primary security impact, which is privilege escalation. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who has obtained a low-privileged user session on an unpatched Windows host - via phishing, RDP brute force, or malware dropper - invokes a crafted sequence of calls into the Windows Push Notifications subsystem that triggers the use-after-free, then reclaims the freed memory with attacker-controlled content to redirect execution to arbitrary code. Successful exploitation yields a SYSTEM token, enabling kernel driver installation, security tool disablement, or credential harvesting from lsass. No public exploit code has been identified, but the low attack complexity (AC:L) in the CVSS vector suggests reliable triggering once the primitive is understood. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Sep 08, 2026
Local privilege escalation in Windows Push Notifications affects Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server 2022/2025 via a use-after-free (CWE-416) memory corruption flaw, allowing a low-privileged authenticated local user to obtain SYSTEM-level execution. The vulnerability spans nine distinct Windows release branches - including server editions - broadening the enterprise attack surface. No public exploit code or CISA KEV listing has been identified at time of analysis; however, LPE primitives of this class are routinely integrated into post-initial-access attack chains.
RemediationAI
Apply the Microsoft security update addressing the Windows Push Notifications use-after-free. Fixed build versions per EUVD data are: Windows 10 21H2 → 10.0.19044.7725, Windows 10 22H2 → 10.0.19045.7725, Windows 11 23H2 → 10.0.22631.7582, Windows 11 24H2 → 10.0.26100.9445, Windows Server 2025 → 10.0.26100.33438, Windows 11 25H2 → 10.0.26200.9445, Windows 11 26H1 → 10.0.28000.2954, Windows Server 2022 → 10.0.20348.5622. Consult the MSRC advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-62697 for the full patch matrix and deployment guidance. As a compensating control before patching, restrict interactive local logon rights (console and RDP) to the minimum necessary accounts - this does not eliminate the vulnerability but raises the bar since PR:L is required; standard user accounts obtained through phishing or malware would still qualify. Disabling Push Notifications entirely is not a practical compensating control given it is a core OS subsystem.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 9 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 vulnerability resides in the Windows Push Notifications subsystem, the OS component that brokers WNS (Windows Notification Service) delivery to user-mode applications. Use-after-free (CWE-416) flaws occur when a memory object is freed but a dangling pointer to it remains accessible; if a subsequent code path dereferences that pointer, an attacker who can control the contents of the reallocated memory region can redirect execution. The CVSS vector AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U confirms local access with standard user privileges is sufficient, no specific configuration is required, and the scope is contained to the target process/kernel - consistent with a kernel or privileged-service UAF triggered from user space. Affected CPE data covers Windows 10 builds 10.0.19044/19045, Windows 11 builds 10.0.22631-10.0.28000, and Windows Server 2022/2025 builds 10.0.20348/10.0.26100.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local-only vector, standard user privilege sufficient, no interaction needed; full CIA impact from SYSTEM-level code execution post-exploitation.
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Use after free in Windows Push Notifications allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
Windows Push Notifications service across Windows 10, 11, and Server 2022/2025 contains a memory corruption vulnerability enabling local privilege escalation to SYSTEM level for authenticated users. This affects a broad enterprise desktop and server footprint and represents a significant elevation vector in post-compromise attack scenarios. Remediation requires immediate patching to eliminate this privilege escalation pathway across the infrastructure.
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
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.
Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.
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EUVD-2026-73373
GHSA-cj7c-p5p8-f4cj
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB