Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessObtain low-privileged local access
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DeliveryRun crafted program triggering object free
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ExploitReuse freed System User Profile object
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ExecutionCorrupt memory to execute code
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ImpactElevate 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 hold valid low-privileged authenticated access to the target host and the ability to execute a crafted local program - there is no remote or network path (AV:L) and no user interaction is needed. The flaw lies in the Windows Internal System User Profile component, so exploitation exercises that subsystem's object handling rather than any optional or non-default feature; no special configuration toggle is indicated by the advisory. Limiting factors: the attacker must first gain a foothold on the machine, and reliable UAF exploitation typically requires precise control of memory allocation timing, which the SSVC Automatable=no rating reflects. Affected builds span Windows 10 (1607/1809/21H2/22H2), Windows 11 (23H2/24H2/25H2/26H1/26H2), and Windows Server 2016/2019/2022/2025 below the patched build numbers listed in EUVD. |
| Impact | This is a locally-exploitable use-after-free (CWE-416) elevation-of-privilege flaw in the Windows Internal System User Profile component. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, base 7.8) indicates an authenticated local attacker with low privileges can achieve full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact with low attack complexity and no user interaction. Signals are consistent but point to a moderate rather than emergency priority: CISA's SSVC decision framework reports Exploitation=none (no observed or public exploitation) and Automatable=no, while Technical Impact=total aligns with the C:H/I:H/A:H rating. No EPSS score was provided, there is no CISA KEV listing, and no public proof-of-concept was referenced, so there is no evidence of active exploitation at this time. The practical risk is that of a classic local privilege-escalation primitive: not remotely reachable and requiring a pre-existing foothold, but valuable to an attacker who already has code execution on a host as part of a post-compromise chain. Given the ubiquity of Windows, patch prioritization is warranted on standard patch-cycle timelines rather than as an out-of-band emergency. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who already has low-privileged authenticated access to a Windows host (for example, via phishing, a compromised standard user account, or a prior low-level foothold) runs a crafted local program that triggers the use-after-free in the Internal System User Profile component. By manipulating the freed object's memory, they corrupt kernel/system state to execute code at SYSTEM-level privileges. No public exploit code was identified at time of analysis, so exploitation would currently require independent development. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 13, 2026
Local privilege escalation in the Windows Internal System User Profile component lets an authenticated attacker who already holds low-privileged access on a Windows host run a crafted local program to trigger a use-after-free (CWE-416) and obtain elevated privileges, with high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CVSS 3.1 base 7.8, AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). Exploitation requires an existing foothold and the ability to execute code locally - there is no remote or network path and no user interaction - and CISA's SSVC assessment rates the flaw non-automatable (Automatable: no), reflecting the precision needed to control memory reallocation timing for a reliable UAF. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, and there is no CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation; affected builds span Windows 10 1607 through 22H2, Windows 11 23H2 through 26H2, and Windows Server 2016/2019/2022/2025 below the fixed build numbers published by the vendor.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: Microsoft has published security updates that raise each affected build above the fixed thresholds - 10.0.14393.9612 for Windows 10 1607 and Windows Server 2016, 10.0.17763.9376 for Windows 10 1809 and Windows Server 2019, 10.0.19044.7807 / 10.0.19045.7807 for Windows 10 21H2 and 22H2, 10.0.20348.5761 for Windows Server 2022, 10.0.22631.7652 for Windows 11 23H2, 10.0.26100.33650 / 10.0.26100.9711 for Windows 11 24H2 and Windows Server 2025, 10.0.26200.9711 for Windows 11 25H2, 10.0.28000.3231 for Windows 11 26H1, and 10.0.26300.9711 for Windows 11 26H2 - deployed through Windows Update, WSUS, or the Microsoft Update Catalog; verify with winver or Get-ComputerInfo after installation and consult https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-96244 for the per-servicing-branch package. Because exploitation requires local code execution by an already-authenticated low-privileged user, the most effective compensating controls until patching completes are enforcing an application allowlist (WDAC or AppLocker in enforced mode) to prevent untrusted binaries from running on endpoints, with the trade-off that legitimate unsigned or unlisted line-of-business tools will be blocked and must be explicitly approved; restricting interactive logon on sensitive servers to privileged access workstations or jump hosts, which reduces the pool of accounts an attacker can use as a foothold but adds administrative friction; and removing unnecessary local administrator rights and stale user accounts, recognizing this limits lateral privilege but does not close the UAF itself. Perimeter and network controls are irrelevant here because the vector is strictly local (AV:L), and there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no CISA KEV activity, so exploitation attempts - if any - should be hunted through endpoint telemetry for anomalous profile-load/unload failures, process crashes in profile-related services, or unexpected token/SYSTEM-level process creation rather than through network signatures.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 16 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 a use-after-free (CWE-416) in the Windows Internal System User Profile subsystem, the in-box component that creates, loads, and tears down per-user profile objects, registry hives, and associated security context data. In this class of bug, memory backing a profile-related object is freed (typically during profile load/unload, logon/logoff transitions, or service/session teardown) while a stale pointer to it is still referenced; the attacker then influences heap layout so that the freed region is reallocated with attacker-controlled contents, allowing the dangling reference to be dereferenced as a controlled structure and corrupting memory - which is why the associated tags include Memory Corruption and Denial Of Service alongside Use After Free. Because the vulnerable code executes in a Windows servicing component that is present by default in every listed SKU, exploitation requires no optional or non-default feature to be enabled; the barrier is instead the attacker's need to win a local heap-grooming race, which the SSVC Automatable: no rating captures. The CVSS vector AV:L/PR:L/UI:N confirms the flaw is only reachable by an attacker with valid low-privileged local credentials and no victim interaction, so it is best classified as a post-compromise elevation-of-privilege primitive rather than an initial-access vector; total technical impact (SSVC Technical Impact: total) is consistent with the C:H/I:H/A:H scoring, meaning a successful attacker effectively controls the host after elevation.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local privilege escalation requiring an authenticated low-privileged foothold (AV:L, PR:L) with no user interaction; a successful UAF yields SYSTEM control, so C/I/A all High.
Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).
CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
Use after free in Windows Internal System User Profile allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Executive ViewAI
A high-severity local privilege escalation flaw in the Windows Internal System User Profile component affects Windows 10 (1607-22H2), Windows 11 (23H2-26H2), and Windows Server 2016/2019/2022/2025. An authenticated attacker who already holds low-privileged local access could elevate to higher privileges, creating risk of full host compromise, lateral movement, and disruption to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Patch available per vendor advisory, and no public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, but unpatched endpoints and servers remain a priority for remediation.
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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.
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EUVD-2026-99754
GHSA-xv6w-vfvc-3f29
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB