CVE-2022-21999
Path Traversal in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 r2
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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-2022-21999 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Server 2008. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Data Obfuscation (T1001); ranked in the top 1% 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.
CVE-2022-21999 is an elevation-of-privilege vulnerability in the Windows Print Spooler service. It is tracked under CWE-22 and CWE-59 and carries a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 reflecting local attack vector, low attack complexity, and low privileges required.
An authenticated local attacker can exploit the flaw without user interaction to obtain full control over the affected system, resulting in high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The vulnerability therefore allows any low-privileged user on a Windows host running the Print Spooler to escalate to SYSTEM-level privileges.
Microsoft’s security update guide provides patches that address the issue, and CISA includes CVE-2022-21999 in its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities, confirming that the flaw has been observed in active campaigns.
EPSS for the CVE rose sharply from lower values after disclosure to a peak of 0.9684 on 2023-04-08 before receding to the current score of 0.7320, indicating sustained post-disclosure exploitation interest that warrants continued attention.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2022-27153
Vulnerability Data
Windows Print Spooler Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
- CWE(s)
- KEV Date Added
- 25 March 2022
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V5.3.2
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.
Validates pathnames and filenames to prevent traversal outside intended directories.
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.
Patching/maintenance can remediate known path-traversal flaws in deployed software (partial prevention of exploitability) but does nothing to stop the coding defect from being introduced in the first place.
Secure SDLC practices directly require code to validate paths and avoid unsafe link following.
PR.AA-05 defines and reviews access policies but does not address code-level pathname neutralization, so neither direction prevents CWE-22.
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.