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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Access
    Obtain low-privileged local code execution
  2. Exploit
    Trigger Win32 kernel TOCTOU race window
  3. Execution
    Win race between check and use
  4. Impact
    Disclose protected kernel/memory information

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture TOCTOU prevention
Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires the attacker to already possess authenticated local access with low privileges (PR:L) on the affected Windows system - it cannot be triggered remotely or by an unauthenticated user. As a TOCTOU race condition, successful exploitation further depends on reliably winning a timing window between the kernel's security check and its use of the resource, which typically demands repeated attempts and favorable scheduling. No specific non-default feature or configuration setting is named in the description; the flaw resides in the default Win32 kernel subsystem present on all listed Windows client and server builds below the patched versions. Impact is limited to information disclosure, with no integrity or availability effect.

Impact

This is a moderate-severity, low-priority issue in practice. The provided CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N, base 5.5) describes a locally-exploitable flaw requiring existing low-level privileges and yielding only information disclosure (C:H, no integrity or availability impact). All exploitation-pressure signals point downward and agree with each other: there is no CISA KEV listing, no public exploit code was provided, and CISA SSVC explicitly rates Exploitation as 'none', Automatable as 'no', and Technical Impact as only 'partial'. One internal inconsistency is worth flagging: the vulnerability is a TOCTOU race condition (CWE-367), which normally implies the attacker must win a timing window, yet the input vector lists AC:L (low complexity) - race conditions typically justify AC:H, so the real attack complexity is likely understated by the input score. Net assessment: a legitimate patch-worthy local privilege/info-disclosure bug, but not an urgent, internet-facing or wormable threat; prioritize via routine Patch Tuesday cycles rather than emergency response.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who already has a low-privileged foothold on a Windows host (e.g., a standard user account or a sandboxed process) runs a program that repeatedly races the Win32 kernel subsystem, exploiting the window between a security check and the use of the resource to read kernel or cross-privilege memory contents it should not see. Winning the race reliably usually requires many attempts, and no public exploit code was identified at time of analysis.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
Patch available 0.3% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 14, 2026

Information disclosure in the Windows Win32 Kernel Subsystem (CVE-2026-70288) allows an authenticated local attacker holding low privileges to read kernel-managed information belonging to other security contexts by winning a time-of-check time-of-use race. Every Windows client and server build below the patched levels published by Microsoft is affected, spanning Windows 10 1607 through 22H2, Windows 11 23H2 through 26H1, and Windows Server 2012 through Server 2025. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, the flaw is not listed in CISA KEV, and CISA's SSVC decision framework rates exploitation as none, automatable as no, and technical impact as partial, making this a moderate-severity, low-priority issue in practice despite NVD's CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).

RemediationAI

Vendor-released patch: Microsoft has published fixed builds in the security update guide for CVE-2026-70288 (https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-70288), so the primary action is to apply the latest cumulative update and verify that each system reports a build at or above the patched threshold for its branch - 10.0.14393.9612 (Windows 10 1607 / Server 2016), 10.0.17763.9376 (Windows 10 1809 / Server 2019), 10.0.19044.7807 (Windows 10 21H2/22H2), 10.0.22631.7652 (Windows 11 23H2), 10.0.26100.9711 (Windows 11 24H2), 10.0.26100.33650 (Windows Server 2025), 10.0.26200.9711 (Windows 11 25H2), 10.0.26300.9711 (Windows 11 26H2), 10.0.28000.3231 (Windows 11 26H1), 6.2.9200.26434 (Server 2012) and 6.3.9600.23470 (Server 2012 R2). Where immediate patching is not possible, note that exploitation requires an already-authenticated local foothold with low privileges (PR:L) and a successfully won timing race, so the effective compensating controls are to remove unnecessary local interactive and service logon rights, restrict who may run code on the host, and apply least privilege so that few principals hold the low-privileged local access the flaw requires; these measures reduce exposure but do not remove the defect and carry the operational cost of tighter user provisioning and possible application breakage. Because the bug is a kernel TOCTOU rather than a remotely reachable service flaw, there is no meaningful port, protocol, or endpoint filter to apply, and blocking anything at the network layer would provide no protection; kernel-level attack surface reduction tools such as WDAC or AppLocker can make reliable exploitation harder by preventing untrusted binaries from executing, at the risk of blocking legitimate software. Detection is limited to monitoring for suspicious local processes repeatedly probing kernel objects, and patching remains the only complete fix.

Affected VersionsENISA

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

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 vulnerability is a CWE-367 time-of-check time-of-use (TOCTOU) race condition inside the Win32 kernel subsystem of Windows, the kernel-mode layer that services Win32 API calls and manages object handles, access checks, and the resources those handles reference. In this bug the kernel verifies an object's access or state in one step and then acts on that resource in a later step, leaving a narrow window in which a local low-privileged process can change the object so that the second step operates on something the security check did not authorize, leaking kernel-managed information back to the attacker. Because the flawed code path lives in the default Win32 kernel subsystem, it is present on all affected builds without requiring any non-default feature or configuration, but the CVSS vector constrains the attacker to local access with low privileges (PR:L, AV:L) and no user interaction (UI:N). The only impact is confidentiality (C:H), with integrity and availability unaffected (I:N/A:N). NVD scores the attack complexity as Low (AC:L), while the independent assessment re-scores it as High (AC:H) and lowers the practical risk accordingly, since reliably landing a TOCTOU race requires repeated timed attempts and favorable scheduler behavior rather than a single deterministic operation.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

Vendor (microsoft) PRIMARY 5.5 MEDIUM
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
vuln.today AI 4.7 MEDIUM

Local authenticated access (AV:L/PR:L); AC:H because a TOCTOU race must be won within a narrow timing window; only confidentiality impact (C:H, I:N, A:N).

3.1 AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
4.0 AV:L/AC:H/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).

CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

Lifecycle Timeline

2
Patch available
Oct 13, 2026 - 20:20 EUVD
CVE Published
Oct 13, 2026 - 19:19 cve.org
MEDIUM 5.5

DescriptionCVE.org

Time-of-check time-of-use (toctou) race condition in Windows Win32 Kernel Subsystem allows an authorized attacker to disclose information locally.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.3%
Top 77% exploitable
Prevalence
Ubiquitous
Win32 kernel subsystem ships in all supported Windows client and server editions
Vendor Status
Publicly Disclosed:No
Exploited:No
Latest Software Release:Exploitation Less 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 MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.3%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
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· derived
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Partial

Priority Score

28
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +28
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.

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Windows Internet Shortcut Files (.url) contain an external control vulnerability (CVE-2025-33053, CVSS 8.8) that enables

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Windows SMB contains an improper access control vulnerability (CVE-2025-33073, CVSS 8.8) enabling authenticated attacker

CVE-2013-10047 CRITICAL POC
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An unrestricted file upload vulnerability exists in MiniWeb HTTP Server <= Build 300 that allows unauthenticated remote

CVE-2012-10030 CRITICAL POC
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FreeFloat FTP Server contains multiple critical design flaws that allow unauthenticated remote attackers to upload arbit

CVE-2025-34101 CRITICAL POC
9.3 Jul 10

Serviio Media Server versions 1.4 through 1.8 on Windows contain an unauthenticated command injection in the /rest/actio

CVE-2025-34095 CRITICAL POC
9.3 Jul 10

Mako Server versions 2.5 and 2.6 contain an unauthenticated OS command injection via the tutorial interface at examples/

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React Native Metro Development Server binds to external interfaces by default and contains an OS command injection endpo

CVE-2026-96951 HIGH POC
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Command injection in the Windows Shell lets remote, unauthenticated attackers bypass a Windows security feature and then

CVE-2025-24054 MEDIUM POC
6.5 Mar 11

External control of file name or path in Windows NTLM allows an unauthorized attacker to perform spoofing over a network

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