CVE-2021-1732
Memory Safety in Microsoft Windows 10 1803
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HSummary
CVE-2021-1732 is a high-severity Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows 10 1803. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 0.5% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2021-1732 is an elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Win32k component of Windows, assigned a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 and categorized under CWE-787 for out-of-bounds write issues. The flaw stems from an offset confusion condition in ConsoleControl handling within the kernel-mode driver.
Local attackers with low privileges can exploit the vulnerability without user interaction to obtain full control over the affected system, resulting in high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Public proof-of-concept code demonstrating the offset confusion technique for privilege escalation has been published on PacketStorm.
Microsoft's security advisory at portal.msrc.microsoft.com provides official guidance on the issue, while multiple exploit implementations confirm the flaw's practical exploitability on unpatched systems.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2021-7196
Vulnerability Data
Windows Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
- CWE(s)
- KEV Date Added
- 03 November 2021
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
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.
Out-of-bounds writes that corrupt control flow or inject shellcode are rendered non-executable by the same memory protections.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure-development practices (static analysis, bounds checking, code review) are the primary means of preventing out-of-bounds writes.
Vulnerability scanning and recording can discover out-of-bounds write flaws so they can be remediated.
Patching or replacing vulnerable software directly eliminates known instances of this coding weakness.
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.
Security testing in development and acceptance can detect and prevent out-of-bounds write defects.
Secure development life cycle mandates practices that prevent out-of-bounds writes.
Application security requirements can specify bounds-checking and safe memory handling.
Secure architecture and engineering principles reduce the likelihood of buffer overflows.
Secure coding directly addresses out-of-bounds writes through language choice and coding standards.
Change management can enforce review gates that catch unsafe memory operations before deployment.