Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
-
AccessObtain low-privileged local foothold
-
DeliveryTrigger use-after-free in SmartScreen
-
ExploitCorrupt freed object memory
-
ExecutionExecute code at elevated privilege
-
ImpactFull control of host
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 local access to an affected Windows host AND an existing authenticated session with at least low (standard-user) privileges (AV:L, PR:L); it cannot be triggered remotely or by an unauthenticated actor. No user interaction is needed (UI:N). The vulnerable component is Windows SmartScreen, which is a default-present Windows reputation/security feature, so no special non-default configuration is indicated by the available data. Affected builds are specific: Windows 11 (23H2 <10.0.22631.7652, 24H2 <10.0.26100.9711, 25H2 <10.0.26200.9711, 26H1 <10.0.28000.3231, 26H2 <10.0.26300.9711) and Windows Server 2025 (<10.0.26100.33650); patched builds at or above these versions are not exploitable. The principal limiting factor is the local-access-plus-privilege prerequisite, which confines this to post-compromise privilege escalation rather than initial access. |
| Impact | This is a locally-exploitable privilege-escalation flaw (CWE-416 use-after-free) in Windows SmartScreen, rated CVSS 7.8 (HIGH). The vendor-supplied CVSS vector (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) is internally consistent and typical of a Microsoft Patch-Tuesday local EoP: an attacker needs local access and at least low privileges (PR:L), no user interaction is required, complexity is low, and successful exploitation yields full confidentiality, integrity and availability impact on the host. There is NO CISA KEV listing and NO public exploit code referenced in the supplied data, so exploitation status is 'no public exploit identified at time of analysis.' EPSS is NOT provided in the input, so exploitation probability cannot be quantified. Net assessment: this is a real but second-tier priority - the AV:L/PR:L requirement means it is not remotely or unauthenticated-reachable and would typically be chained after an initial foothold (e.g., as a second-stage local EoP), rather than a mass-exploitable internet-facing bug. It warrants routine-to-prompt patching given the ubiquity of Windows and the memory-corruption class, but absent KEV/EPSS/POC signals there is no evidence of active or imminent widespread exploitation. Note a minor signal conflict: the input Tags include 'Denial Of Service' while the description and CVSS scope the impact as local privilege elevation - the A:H metric plausibly covers a DoS side effect, but the primary impact per Microsoft is EoP. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who already has a low-privileged foothold on a Windows 11 or Server 2025 host (e.g., via phishing or a compromised standard user account) triggers the use-after-free in SmartScreen to corrupt memory and execute code at elevated privilege. No user interaction is required. No public proof-of-concept is referenced in the available data, so weaponization effort is presently unknown. |
Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.
Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 13, 2026
Local privilege escalation in Windows SmartScreen allows an authenticated attacker holding only standard-user rights to trigger a use-after-free in the reputation-checking component and escalate to a high-integrity context on an unpatched host. The flaw is rated CVSS 7.8 (HIGH) with full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), meaning it is exploitable locally without user interaction but requires an existing low-privileged session, so it functions as a post-compromise escalation step rather than a remote initial-access vector. Affected builds span Windows 11 23H2 through 26H2 and Windows Server 2025; Microsoft has published vendor patches that raise the OS build above the vulnerable thresholds, and no public exploit code was identified at time of analysis.
RemediationAI
Apply the vendor patch: Microsoft reports a fix is available, and installations must be updated past the affected build thresholds - Windows 11 23H2 to 10.0.22631.7652 or later, 24H2 to 10.0.26100.9711 or later, 25H2 to 10.0.26200.9711 or later, 26H1 to 10.0.28000.3231 or later, 26H2 to 10.0.26300.9711 or later, and Windows Server 2025 (including Server Core) to 10.0.26100.33650 or later; the Microsoft Security Update Guide page at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-85851 maps these builds to the corresponding cumulative update packages. Because exploitation requires an already-authenticated local session, the most effective compensating controls target the pre-condition rather than SmartScreen itself: restrict interactive and RDP logon on high-value hosts to trusted accounts (side effect: reduced administrative flexibility), monitor Windows security event logs and EDR telemetry for anomalous token elevation or unexpected child processes spawned from SmartScreen/shell processes (side effect: requires tuned detections to avoid alert fatigue), and prioritize patching of multi-user, RDP-exposed, and shared-use workstations and servers where untrusted users can obtain a standard-user session. Disabling SmartScreen outright is not recommended as a mitigation - it removes a default protective control and provides no reliable guarantee against exploitation while degrading reputation-based download and URL protection; if an environment elects to do so temporarily, it should be scoped narrowly and reversed as soon as patched builds are deployed, since Microsoft does not treat SmartScreen as an optional security feature.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 7 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 root cause is CWE-416, a use-after-free in Windows SmartScreen, the default-enabled reputation and phishing/URL filtering feature that backs Mark-of-the-Web checks, download warnings, and file/URL reputation prompts across Windows shells (Explorer, Edge, and the Shell SmartScreen component). In a use-after-free, a heap object that SmartScreen has already deallocated remains reachable through a dangling pointer; a local attacker who can race or otherwise influence the lifetime of that object can cause the component to write to or interpret attacker-influenced memory, typically leading to memory corruption (the supplied tags call out Memory Corruption and Use After Free) and, ultimately, arbitrary code execution in the context of the SmartScreen process. Because the vulnerable component ships and runs by default on the listed Windows client and server builds, the independent assessment concludes no special non-default configuration is required, and the only gating prerequisites are local code execution plus an authenticated low-privileged session (AV:L, PR:L, UI:N). The affected build ranges are precise: Windows 11 23H2 below 10.0.22631.7652, 24H2 below 10.0.26100.9711, 25H2 below 10.0.26200.9711, 26H1 below 10.0.28000.3231, 26H2 below 10.0.26300.9711, and Windows Server 2025 (including Server Core) below 10.0.26100.33650; builds at or above those levels are not exploitable.
Know when Windows gets its next vulnerability
- Watch products and get an email when something new is published
- Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
- Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
No credit card · 7-day full trial
Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local use-after-free EoP requiring an existing low-privileged session (AV:L, PR:L), no interaction, low complexity, yielding full host C/I/A impact within an unchanged scope.
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Use after free in Windows SmartScreen allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
A high-severity local privilege escalation vulnerability in Windows SmartScreen affects Windows 11 23H2 through 26H2 and Windows Server 2025, enabling an authenticated standard user to gain high-integrity control on an unpatched host. Microsoft has released patches, but any unpatched device could allow a limited user foothold to become complete host compromise, affecting confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Leadership should prioritize patching these Windows builds because the flaw can amplify existing user-level compromises into broader enterprise risk.
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
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.
Unauthenticated remote code execution in SmarterTools SmarterMail lets an attacker upload arbitrary files to any locatio
Windows Win32k fails to properly handle objects in memory, allowing local privilege escalation exploited in the wild in
A privilege escalation vulnerability (CVSS 5.5). Risk factors: actively exploited (KEV-listed), EPSS 94% exploitation pr
Windows Internet Shortcut Files (.url) contain an external control vulnerability (CVE-2025-33053, CVSS 8.8) that enables
Windows SMB contains an improper access control vulnerability (CVE-2025-33073, CVSS 8.8) enabling authenticated attacker
Twonky Server 8.5.2 on Linux and Windows allows unauthenticated access to the admin log file through a web service API b
An unrestricted file upload vulnerability exists in MiniWeb HTTP Server <= Build 300 that allows unauthenticated remote
FreeFloat FTP Server contains multiple critical design flaws that allow unauthenticated remote attackers to upload arbit
Serviio Media Server versions 1.4 through 1.8 on Windows contain an unauthenticated command injection in the /rest/actio
Twonky Server 8.5.2 uses hard-coded cryptographic keys for encrypting the administrator password. Combined with the cred
Mako Server versions 2.5 and 2.6 contain an unauthenticated OS command injection via the tutorial interface at examples/
React Native Metro Development Server binds to external interfaces by default and contains an OS command injection endpo
EUVD-2026-99555
GHSA-w285-gpvx-g327
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB