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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Access
    Obtain local low-priv user context
  2. Delivery
    Launch crafted program triggering Win32k UAF
  3. Exploit
    Win race and reclaim freed kernel object
  4. Execution
    Corrupt kernel memory for code execution
  5. Impact
    Elevate to SYSTEM privileges

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 the attacker to already possess local, authenticated access to the target host as at least a low-privileged user (PR:L) - there is no remote or network vector (AV:L) and no user interaction is needed (UI:N). The key limiting factor is high attack complexity (AC:H): use-after-free exploitation in the Win32 kernel subsystem typically depends on winning a timing/race condition and successfully reclaiming and grooming the freed kernel object, which is not reliably reproducible on every attempt. All currently supported Windows client and server builds below the patched versions listed in EUVD-2026-99513 (e.g., Windows 11 24H2 <10.0.26100.9711, Windows Server 2025 <10.0.26100.33650, Windows 10 22H2 <10.0.19044.7807) are affected in default configurations; no special feature enablement is cited, so the limiting factors are the prerequisite local foothold and the race reliability rather than a non-default setting.

Impact

This is a moderate-priority local privilege escalation driven by a use-after-free (CWE-416) in the Windows Win32 kernel subsystem. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U) confirms the attacker must already have local, authenticated low-privilege access and must win a non-trivial condition (AC:H) - consistent with the race windows typical of kernel UAF bugs - before achieving the full C:H/I:H/A:H impact of SYSTEM-level compromise. No EPSS score, SSVC decision, KEV listing, or POC was provided, so there is no positive signal of real-world exploitation: this is best treated as no public exploit identified at time of analysis. The 7.0 base score is a genuine 'High' but is held down from critical precisely by the local access requirement and high attack complexity, so it is not an internet-facing emergency. The realistic concern is as a second-stage escalation primitive after an attacker already has code execution on the host (e.g., post-phishing or chained with an RCE). Note the input Tags include 'Denial Of Service' while the description describes only privilege elevation - the A:H impact can manifest as a bugcheck/DoS, but the authoritative impact is EoP; treat the DoS tag as a secondary, memory-corruption-derived characterization rather than the primary outcome.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who already has a low-privileged foothold on a Windows host (e.g., a standard user account gained via phishing or a prior exploit) runs a crafted local program that triggers the use-after-free in the Win32 kernel subsystem. By winning the race/timing condition (AC:H) and grooming the freed kernel object, they corrupt kernel memory to execute code as SYSTEM and fully take over the machine. No public exploit code was identified at time of analysis.

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 – Oct 13, 2026

Local privilege escalation in the Windows Win32 kernel subsystem (use-after-free, CWE-416) allows an authenticated low-privileged local user to gain elevated privileges, up to SYSTEM, on unpatched Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server builds. The assessed vector CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H means the attacker must already hold a local foothold and successfully win a timing-dependent kernel memory-reuse race, making exploitation possible but not reliably reproducible; no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no CISA KEV active-exploitation confirmation. Microsoft has released vendor patches, with affected builds enumerated in EUVD-2026-99513 below their respective fixed version numbers.

RemediationAI

Vendor-released patches are available from Microsoft; apply the updates referenced in the MSRC advisory (https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-85802) to move each host to or above its fixed build: Windows 11 26H2 10.0.26300.9711, Windows 11 26H1 10.0.28000.3231, Windows 11 25H2 10.0.26200.9711, Windows 11 24H2 10.0.26100.9711, Windows 11 23H2 10.0.22631.7652, Windows 10 21H2/22H2 10.0.19044.7807, Windows 10 1809 10.0.17763.9376, Windows 10 1607 10.0.14393.9612, Windows Server 2025 10.0.26100.33650, Windows Server 2022 10.0.20348.5761, Windows Server 2019 10.0.17763.9376, Windows Server 2016 10.0.14393.9612, Windows Server 2012 R2 6.3.9600.23470, and Windows Server 2012 6.2.9200.26434. Because the attack requires an authenticated local low-privileged foothold (AV:L/PR:L) plus a difficult race (AC:H), there is no remote mitigation that substitutes for patching; organizations that cannot patch immediately should reduce local attack surface by enforcing least privilege so that interactive and service accounts are not granted unnecessary local logon rights, limiting interactive console and RDP access to trusted administrators, and removing or restricting untrusted local software and scripting hosts that could be used to trigger the kernel path - accepting that these measures degrade day-to-day usability and are not equivalent to the vendor fix. Additionally, monitor endpoint telemetry for anomalous local privilege-escalation behavior or kernel memory-corruption indicators, and stage patch deployment first on client and internet-facing server tiers that carry the highest risk of an attacker already holding a local foothold.

Affected VersionsENISA

Windows 11 Version 26H2 10.0.26300.0 <10.0.26300.9711
Windows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation) 6.3.9600.0 <6.3.9600.23470
Windows Server 2025 (Server Core installation) 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.33650
Windows 10 Version 21H2 10.0.19044.0 <10.0.19044.7807
Windows 11 Version 23H2 10.0.22631.0 <10.0.22631.7652
Windows 10 Version 22H2 10.0.19045.0 <10.0.19044.7807
Windows 11 Version 24H2 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.9711
Windows Server 2019 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9376
Windows Server 2012 R2 6.3.9600.0 <6.3.9600.23470
Windows 11 version 26H1 10.0.28000.0 <10.0.28000.3231
Windows Server 2025 10.0.26100.0 <10.0.26100.33650
Windows 11 Version 25H2 10.0.26200.0 <10.0.26200.9711
Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation) 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9612
Windows Server 2019 (Server Core installation) 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9376
Windows Server 2012 6.2.9200.0 <6.2.9200.26434
Windows 10 Version 1607 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9612
Windows 10 Version 1809 10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.9376
Windows Server 2012 (Server Core installation) 6.2.9200.0 <6.2.9200.26434
Windows Server 2022 10.0.20348.0 <10.0.20348.5761
Windows Server 2016 10.0.14393.0 <10.0.14393.9612

Affected Packages

euvd windows_10_version_1607 fix: 10.0.14393.9612
euvd windows_10_version_1809 fix: 10.0.17763.9376
euvd windows_10_version_21h2 fix: 10.0.19044.7807
euvd windows_10_version_22h2 fix: 10.0.19044.7807
euvd windows_11_version_23h2 fix: 10.0.22631.7652
euvd windows_11_version_24h2 fix: 10.0.26100.9711
euvd windows_11_version_25h2 fix: 10.0.26200.9711
euvd windows_11_version_26h1 fix: 10.0.28000.3231
euvd windows_11_version_26h2 fix: 10.0.26300.9711
euvd windows_server_2012 fix: 6.2.9200.26434
euvd windows_server_2012_r2 fix: 6.3.9600.23470
euvd windows_server_2012_r2_server_core_installation fix: 6.3.9600.23470
euvd windows_server_2012_server_core_installation fix: 6.2.9200.26434
euvd windows_server_2016 fix: 10.0.14393.9612
euvd windows_server_2016_server_core_installation fix: 10.0.14393.9612
euvd windows_server_2019 fix: 10.0.17763.9376
euvd windows_server_2019_server_core_installation fix: 10.0.17763.9376
euvd windows_server_2022 fix: 10.0.20348.5761
euvd windows_server_2025 fix: 10.0.26100.33650
euvd windows_server_2025_server_core_installation fix: 10.0.26100.33650

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 flaw is a use-after-free (CWE-416) in the Windows Win32 kernel subsystem, the component that exposes Win32 API surface to user-mode callers through kernel-mode drivers and system calls. A use-after-free of this class occurs when a kernel object allocated on behalf of a caller is freed while a stale pointer or handle reference to it remains reachable; an attacker who can trigger the faulty free and then reclaim the freed pool block with attacker-influenced contents can corrupt kernel control data and pivot to elevated execution. The CVSS vector CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H confirms the attack surface is strictly local (AV:L), requires the attacker to be an authenticated low-privileged user (PR:L), needs no user interaction (UI:N), and yields high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact within the same security scope. The high attack complexity (AC:H) is consistent with the exploitation reality of kernel use-after-free bugs: the attacker typically must win a race between the free and the reclaim, groom the pool to place a suitable object in the freed slot, and avoid destabilizing the kernel, so a working primitive is not guaranteed on every attempt. No additional CPE identifiers were supplied with this record, so affected coverage is taken from the EUVD-2026-99513 version ranges, which span the Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server client and server editions listed below their patched build numbers.

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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 UAF requiring an existing low-priv account (PR:L) and winning a race condition (AC:H); successful exploitation yields SYSTEM, giving full C/I/A impact.

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
Oct 13, 2026 - 20:20 EUVD
CVE Published
Oct 13, 2026 - 19:21 cve.org
HIGH 7.0

DescriptionCVE.org

Use after free in Windows Win32 Kernel Subsystem allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

A high-severity local privilege escalation flaw in Microsoft Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server can allow an authenticated local attacker to gain SYSTEM-level control on unpatched hosts. While no public exploit identified at time of analysis and exploitation requires an existing local foothold and a complex kernel race, success would fully compromise the affected endpoint or server and elevate remediation priority across endpoint and server fleets. Microsoft has released patches, so leadership should direct rapid deployment to affected Windows builds.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.3%
Top 82% exploitable
Prevalence
Ubiquitous
Core Windows kernel component across all supported client and server editions
Vendor Status
Publicly Disclosed:No
Exploited:No
Latest Software Release:Exploitation More 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

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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