Security Resilience

CVE-2015-2546

Memory Safety in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 r2

CISA KEVActive ExploitationEUVD ExploitedRansomware-linkedMemory Safety
Published
09 September 2015
Modified
14 August 2026
KEV Added
15 March 2022
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.2
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.10 96th percentile
Risk Priority 84 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2015-2546 is a high-severity Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer (CWE-119) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Server 2008. Its CVSS base score is 8.2 (High).

Operationally, ranked in the top 4% 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 a memory corruption issue in the kernel-mode driver component known as Win32k, affecting multiple versions of Microsoft Windows including Vista SP2, Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8 and 8.1, Server 2012 Gold and R2, RT Gold and 8.1, and Windows 10. It is tracked as an elevation of privilege flaw (distinct from CVE-2015-2511, CVE-2015-2517, and CVE-2015-2518) and stems from improper handling that can be triggered by specially crafted input, corresponding to CWE-119.

Local users can exploit the flaw by running a crafted application on an affected system, resulting in elevation of privileges with the potential for full control over the target host. The CVSS 3.1 score of 8.2 reflects local attack vector, low complexity, and high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability when conditions such as user interaction are met.

Microsoft's security bulletin MS15-097 addresses the issue through available patches and updates for the listed Windows versions, recommending installation of the fixes to prevent exploitation of the Win32k driver.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

The kernel-mode driver in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT Gold and 8.1, and Windows 10 allows local users to…

more

gain privileges via a crafted application, aka "Win32k Memory Corruption Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability," a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-2511, CVE-2015-2517, and CVE-2015-2518.

CWE(s)
KEV Date Added
15 March 2022

Related Threats

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2014-6332Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2015-2360Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2015-2426Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2013-3660Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2017-0022Same product: Microsoft Windows 10 1507both on KEV
CVE-2015-0016Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2014-4114Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2014-6352Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2017-0101Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2021-31979Same product: Microsoft Windows 10 1507both on KEV

Affected Assets

microsoft
windows 10 1507
all versions
microsoft
windows 7
all versions
microsoft
windows 8
all versions
microsoft
windows 8.1
all versions
microsoft
windows rt
all versions
microsoft
windows rt 8.1
all versions
microsoft
windows server 2008
all versions, r2
microsoft
windows server 2012
all versions, r2
microsoft
windows vista
all versions

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.

addresses: CWE-119

Ongoing control assessments and code testing (static/dynamic analysis, fuzzing) surface memory buffer restriction failures, which are then remediated before release.

addresses: CWE-119

Managed runtimes used by platform-independent applications (e.g., JVM, CLR) enforce memory safety, preventing most buffer overflows that require direct memory manipulation.

addresses: CWE-119

Memory protections (e.g., W^X, ASLR) make exploitation of buffer-boundary violations far harder to turn into code execution.

addresses: CWE-119

Detects exploitation attempts that produce memory corruption, crashes, or anomalous behavior.

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.

blocks

A.8.25 mandates secure SDLC practices (secure coding guidelines, security requirements, testing including code scans and penetration tests, developer training) that reach buffer management and can stop many buffer overruns from reaching production, but leaves a bounded remainder (e.g. flaws in non-software components, incomplete enforcement of guidelines, or post-deployment changes)

blocks

Application security requirements can specify memory-safety rules, but do not prescribe implementation details.

blocks

A.8.27 mandates security-by-design principles (e.g. least privilege, fail securely, distrust external input, hardening) plus design reviews that can catch and stop buffer-boundary errors before they reach code, but this is only one minority slice of CWE-119's broad surface (language-specific flaws, unsafe library use, compiler/runtime mitigations, and post-deployment instances remain outside its direct scope).

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe buffer operations, directly eliminating CWE-119.

finds

Security testing in development catches out-of-bounds accesses before release, covering most instances of the weakness.

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.

  • No fine-grained STIG row for CWE-119, a class-level weakness. Rules are authored against its narrower children: CWE-823.

References