Background exploitation KEV catalog Ransomware
CVE-2018-8639

Microsoft Windows Win32k Improper Resource Shutdown or Release Vulnerability

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows when the Win32k component fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT…

CheckOps priority index
6.4/10 Patch within 7 days
Severity8.4
Probability2.2
Exploitation4/5

Severity = CVSS. Probability = EPSS (FIRST). Exploitation = public signals: KEV, EUVD, ransomware, EPSS above 10 %, no account required.

EPSS · today 22.2% higher than 97.7% of CVEs
CVSS 3.1 8.4 AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:
Exploited for 610 days 03 Mar 2025
CISA due date 24 Mar 2025 for US federal agencies

Exploitation probability EPSS · FIRST

05010026 Sep05 Oct15 Oct24 Oct02 Nov
EPSS probability (%)Percentile among all CVEs

Exploitation signals 4 / 5

  • KEV catalog (CISA)03 Mar 2025
  • Exploited in EUVD (ENISA)03 Mar 2025
  • Used by ransomwareyes
  • EPSS above 10 %22.2%
  • No account, over the networkno

What to do

Fix

Apply the vendor’s fix as soon as it is available.

CISA guidance: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Meanwhile

Take the service off the internet or restrict access to it, watch the logs and look for signs of compromise.

Manufacturers (CRA)

Exploited vulnerability in your product: early warning to ENISA within 24 h, then notification within 72 h (Article 14 of the Cyber Resilience Act). The CRA explained

Description ENISA EUVD

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows when the Win32k component fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2012, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 10, Windows 10 Servers. This CVE ID is unique from CVE-2018-8641.

Affected products

Windows Server 2008Windows 10Windows 10 ServersWindows RT 8.1Windows 8.1Windows Server 2016Windows Server 2012 R2Windows Server 2008 R2Windows 7Windows Server 2012Windows Server 2019Windows
Affected versions
  • Itanium-Based Systems Service Pack 2
  • 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation)
  • 32-bit Systems
  • version 1709 (Server Core Installation)
  • Version 1809 for 32-bit Systems
  • Version 1809 for ARM64-based Systems
  • Version 1709 for 32-bit Systems
  • Version 1803 for ARM64-based Systems
  • Version 1703 for x64-based Systems
  • Windows RT 8.1
  • 32-bit systems
  • Version 1607 for 32-bit Systems
Weaknesses (CWE)

Open source packages OSV

Affected libraries according to OSV, with fixed versions.

Timeline

  1. Published

  2. Exploitation reported (ENISA)

  3. Added to the KEV catalog

  4. CISA remediation due date

  5. EPSS peak: 22.2%

References

Other exploited vulnerabilities from the same vendor

  • CVE-2026-96951Microsoft Windows Command Injection Vulnerability
    5.6 · Actively exploited
  • CVE-2026-65660Microsoft SharePoint Code Injection Vulnerability
    5.0 · Actively exploited
  • CVE-2026-85880Microsoft Windows Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability
    4.3 · Actively exploited
  • CVE-2026-81963Microsoft Windows Link Following Vulnerability
    4.3 · Actively exploited
  • CVE-2019-1068Microsoft SQL Server Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
    7.0 · Actively exploited
  • CVE-2026-69836Microsoft Entra
    5.3 · Actively exploited

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Sources: CISA KEV · ENISA EUVD · FIRST EPSS · OSV. Public data aggregated by CheckOps, updated automatically. Source texts remain the property of their authors. All exploited vulnerabilities