Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2014-1812 is a high-severity Insufficiently Protected Credentials (CWE-522) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Server 2008. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).
Operationally, ranked in the top 0.8% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
The vulnerability is an elevation of privilege flaw in the Group Policy implementation on Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2. It stems from improper handling of password distribution in Group Policy Preferences, allowing credentials stored in SYSVOL to be accessed by unauthorized parties, and is tracked under CWE-255 and CWE-522.
Remote authenticated users with access to the SYSVOL share can exploit the issue to retrieve sensitive credential information and subsequently obtain elevated privileges on affected systems. The flaw was actively exploited in the wild as of May 2014.
Microsoft security bulletin MS14-025 and the associated Security Research & Defense blog post describe an update that removes the ability to deploy passwords via Group Policy Preferences, recommending administrators cease using this feature and transition to more secure alternatives such as LAPS or scheduled tasks with proper permissions. The update is available through standard Windows Update channels for the listed platforms.
The vulnerability appears in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, confirming real-world exploitation activity.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2014-1886
Vulnerability Data
The Group Policy implementation in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2 does not properly handle distribution of passwords, which allows remote…
more
authenticated users to obtain sensitive credential information and consequently gain privileges by leveraging access to the SYSVOL share, as exploited in the wild in May 2014, aka "Group Policy Preferences Password Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
- CWE(s)
- KEV Date Added
- 03 November 2021
Related Threats
Threat-Actor AttributionAI
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Training instructs users on protecting credentials from disclosure or unauthorized access.
Training records for security awareness and role-based training verify education on credential protection practices, tangibly reducing risks from mishandling or exposing credentials.
Protecting authenticator content from unauthorized disclosure and modification while requiring protective controls addresses insufficiently protected credentials.
Rules of behavior include credential protection and non-sharing requirements, reducing exposure of insufficiently protected credentials.
Terminating or revoking credentials stops use of insufficiently protected or lingering credentials post-termination.
Requiring confidentiality/integrity protection for stored credentials directly mitigates insufficiently protected credentials on disk or in configuration stores.
Credentials or keys delivered out-of-band are not exposed to interception or inadequate protection on the main transport.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
A.5.10 only requires awareness, a topic-specific acceptable-use policy stating expected behaviours/monitoring, and procedures referencing other controls (e.g. access restrictions, marking, disposal); it performs none of the verb on CWE-522's insecure credential transmission/storage, which requires technical protections like encryption or secure channels that this governance clause does not supply.
A.5.17 mandates secure allocation, transmission, storage, hashing/encryption per 8.24, strong non-reusable passwords, immediate change of defaults/compromise, and no cleartext — directly stopping exploitation of insufficiently protected credentials with only a bounded remainder (e.g. non-password authenticators or post-storage exposure vectors outside its scope).
A.6.2 sets contractual terms, NDAs, and communicates responsibilities to personnel; it has no technical effect on how credentials are protected in transmission or storage and cannot stop exploitation of CWE-522
Regular reminders about password security and personal accountability make users less likely to store or transmit credentials in cleartext or other unprotected forms.
A.8.24's purpose, guidance (b,c), and key management mandate proper cryptography (algorithms, strength, protection of credentials in storage/transmission) per classification, which stops exploitation of insufficiently-protected credentials; remainder is bounded (e.g. non-cryptographic protections like hashing-only or non-crypto obfuscation per CWE-522 details).
A.8.5 mandates MFA, alternative strong methods, no cleartext transmission/storage of passwords, session termination, brute-force protection and secure log-on procedures that directly stop interception/retrieval of credentials even when they exist, leaving only a bounded remainder (e.g. non-password credentials or post-authentication storage outside log-on flows)
Hardening callouts derived
DISA STIG baselines are authored against specific weaknesses. Where this CVE cites a broad weakness class, the mapping is not asserted at that abstraction (owner ruling, 2026-09-25: grade only at Base and below), so no rule is shown here rather than a rule shown against the wrong grain.