Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-50454

Path Traversal in Microsoft Windows 11 24H2 ≤ 10.0.26100.8875

Published
14 July 2026
Modified
29 July 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0044 36th percentile
Risk Priority 57 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-50454 is a high-severity Relative Path Traversal (CWE-23) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows 11 24H2. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 36th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and AC-3 (Access Enforcement) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Relative path traversal in Windows User Interface Core allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1005 Data from Local System Collection
Adversaries may search local system sources, such as file systems, configuration files, local databases, virtual machine files, or process memory, to find files of interest and sensitive data prior to Exfiltration.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-40400Same product: Microsoft Windows 11 24H2
CVE-2025-53779Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2025
CVE-2026-50426Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2025
CVE-2023-23379Same vendor: Microsoft
CVE-2026-56196Same vendor: Microsoft
CVE-2023-35359Same vendor: Microsoft
CVE-2025-62552Same vendor: Microsoft
CVE-2024-30010Same vendor: Microsoft
CVE-2024-43614Same vendor: Microsoft
CVE-2026-47287Same vendor: Microsoft

Affected Assets

microsoft
windows 11 24h2
≤ 10.0.26100.8875 · ≤ 10.0.26100.8875
microsoft
windows 11 25h2
≤ 10.0.26200.8875 · ≤ 10.0.26200.8875
microsoft
windows 11 26h1
≤ 10.0.28000.2269 · ≤ 10.0.28000.2525
microsoft
windows server 2025
≤ 10.0.26100.33158

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.3.2

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Explicit validation of path inputs stops .. sequences from ever being interpreted by the file system.

Access enforcement directly blocks unauthorized file reads/writes that result from unresolved .. sequences.

Information-flow rules can be configured to reject traversals that would move data outside an approved directory boundary.

Least privilege reduces the set of reachable files even when a traversal succeeds.

Secure-engineering principles require safe pathname construction and input neutralization before any file operation.

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.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require input validation and path sanitization that prevent relative traversal.

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.

finds

Security testing in development catches path traversal via static/dynamic analysis, but does not itself implement the fix.

prevents

Secure development lifecycle mandates input validation and path-handling controls that directly prevent relative path traversal.

prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against path traversal and other injection flaws.

prevents

Secure architecture principles include directory isolation and canonicalization, reducing but not eliminating traversal risk.

prevents

Secure coding standards require neutralizing path traversal sequences, directly addressing CWE-23.

mitigates

Information access restriction limits which files can be reached, mitigating impact but not preventing the traversal flaw.

References