Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessGain local low-privileged foothold
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DeliveryInvoke vulnerable Overlay Filter code path
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ExploitTrigger out-of-bounds kernel read
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ExecutionLeak kernel memory/tokens
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ImpactElevate to SYSTEM privileges
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Bounds checking, read limits
MITRE ATT&CK
1 technique across 1 tactic: Collection The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Requires the attacker to already have authenticated, low-privileged local code execution on the target Windows host (CVSS AV:L, PR:L, UI:N) - there is no remote or network-triggerable path and no victim interaction is needed. The Windows Overlay Filter (WOF, wof.sys) is a built-in Windows component present by default across supported client and server editions, so no non-default configuration is required to reach the vulnerable code; the primary limiting factor is the prerequisite local foothold, and per CISA SSVC the attack is not automatable, indicating reliable exploitation requires non-trivial, likely bespoke, exploit development. |
| Impact | This is a locally-exploitable elevation-of-privilege flaw whose CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, base 7.8) is internally consistent with the description: an 'authorized' (PR:L) attacker already running code on the host triggers an out-of-bounds read (CWE-125) in the Windows Overlay Filter (wof.sys) to elevate. The exploitation signals are notably benign: CISA's SSVC decision shows Exploitation=none and Automatable=no, there is no CISA KEV listing, and no public exploit code is referenced - so despite a HIGH severity rating, the real-world urgency is moderate rather than acute. The one aggravating signal is SSVC Technical Impact=total, consistent with the C:H/I:H/A:H full-impact rating. Note a mild internal tension worth flagging: the root weakness is an out-of-bounds READ (typically an information-disclosure/confidentiality primitive), yet Microsoft assigns full Integrity and Availability impact as well - this reflects Microsoft's standard EoP scoring where the leaked data (e.g., kernel addresses/tokens) is leveraged into full SYSTEM control, not three independent impacts; verify against the MSRC advisory if precise impact decomposition matters. Overall: a legitimate patch-soon kernel EoP for Windows fleets, but not a drop-everything item absent evidence of exploitation. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who has already gained low-privileged code execution on a Windows host (e.g., via phishing, a compromised service account, or an initial RCE) invokes the vulnerable Windows Overlay Filter code path to trigger an out-of-bounds read, leaking kernel memory that is then used to escalate to SYSTEM. No public exploit code is identified at time of analysis, and the attack is not automatable per CISA SSVC, implying bespoke exploit development would be required. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 14, 2026
Out-of-bounds read in the Windows Overlay Filter (wof.sys), a kernel-mode Windows component enabled by default, allows an authenticated local attacker with an existing low-privileged foothold to elevate privileges on the host (CVSS 3.1 base 7.8, AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). Because wof.sys loads by default across supported client and server editions, no non-default configuration is required to reach the vulnerable code; the primary gating factor is the prerequisite of local code execution, and no public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, with CISA SSVC rating exploitation as none and the attack as not automatable. Successful exploitation yields total technical impact per SSVC (high confidentiality, integrity and availability impact), consistent with a kernel-level memory-safety primitive being turned into local privilege escalation.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: Microsoft has published fixed Windows builds for every affected branch, delivered through the standard Windows Update, Microsoft Update Catalog and WSUS channels; apply the build at or above the version listed for your platform per the Microsoft Security Response Center advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-69952 and the EUVD/NVD mirrors (Windows 10 1607 / Server 2016: 10.0.14393.9612; Windows 10 1809 / Server 2019: 10.0.17763.9376; Windows 10 21H2 and 22H2: 10.0.19044.7807; Windows 11 23H2: 10.0.22631.7652; Windows 11 24H2 / Server 2025: 10.0.26100.9711 and 10.0.26100.33650 respectively; Windows 11 25H2: 10.0.26200.9711; Windows 11 26H1: 10.0.28000.3231; Windows 11 26H2: 10.0.26300.9711; Server 2012: 6.2.9200.26434; Server 2012 R2: 6.3.9600.23470; Server 2022: 10.0.20348.5761). Because exploitation requires an existing authenticated, low-privileged local foothold and no public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis, there is no practical driver-level workaround: wof.sys cannot be unloaded or disabled without breaking access to System Compression/CompactOS and WIMBoot-compressed files on systems that use them, so treating that as a mitigation carries an operational breakage trade-off and only degrades exposure rather than removing the flaw. Compensating controls therefore focus on removing the prerequisite foothold and limiting post-compromise escalation: enforce least privilege so interactive users are non-administrative, use WDAC or AppLocker (in enforced, not audit-only, mode, accepting that unsigned or unapproved line-of-business binaries will be blocked) to constrain execution of untrusted code that could host the exploit, keep endpoint detection tuned to local privilege-escalation and anomalous kernel-driver activity, and prioritize patching on multi-user, RDP-exposed or shared-workstation hosts where low-privileged local access is routinely available. Confirm the installed wof.sys build on each host matches the fixed version rather than relying solely on update compliance reporting.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 20 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 Overlay Filter (WOF) is a Microsoft kernel driver (wof.sys) that implements the Windows Overlay File System Filter, providing transparent decompression of files stored in compressed formats used by WIMBoot, CompactOS/System Compression and related deployment technologies; the driver also handles overlay metadata used to substitute data for on-disk content. The flaw is a CWE-125 out-of-bounds read, meaning the driver reads beyond the bounds of an allocated buffer while processing data it consumes from a user-influenced source rather than a classic write-based buffer overflow. In a kernel-mode driver, an uncontrolled OOB read is a recognized primitive both for information disclosure (leaking adjacent kernel memory that can defeat KASLR or expose sensitive structures) and as a step in crafting more powerful memory corruption; the assigned CVSS impacts (C:H/I:H/A:H) indicate the assessed outcome is full local privilege elevation, not merely a memory-content leak. The vector AV:L/PR:L/UI:N confirms exploitation requires pre-existing local code execution by an authenticated low-privileged user and needs no victim interaction, while SSVC 'Automatable: no' indicates reliable exploitation demands non-trivial, likely bespoke exploit development rather than a scripted, drive-by approach. Affected CPE scope corresponds to the wof.sys driver shipped with the Windows 10, Windows 11 and Windows Server kernel builds enumerated in the vendor and EUVD data.
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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 EoP requiring an existing low-privileged account (AV:L, PR:L); no scope change (S:U); full SYSTEM compromise yields C:H/I:H/A:H consistent with SSVC total technical impact.
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Out-of-bounds read in Windows Overlay Filter allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
A high-severity memory-safety flaw in the Windows Overlay Filter (wof.sys), a kernel-mode driver enabled by default across supported Windows client and server editions, lets an attacker who already holds a low-privileged local foothold on a machine escalate to full system-level control of that host. Exposure is broad because no non-default configuration is required, although the attacker must already be authenticated and present on the device, and no public exploit code or confirmed active exploitation has been identified. Leadership should treat this as a fleet-wide patch-management priority rather than an active incident, with attention to servers and endpoints that hold privileged credentials or administrative sessions.
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
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.
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.
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EUVD-2026-99112
GHSA-6cc4-fpfv-xq9w
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB