Vulnerability Monitor

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CVE-2018-8453

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows when the Win32k component fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2012, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 10, Windows 10 Servers.

Security Impact Summary

This vulnerability carries a HIGH severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.8, requiring local system access to exploit with relatively low complexity though user interaction is required and does not require pre-existing privileges . The vulnerability impacts confidentiality (data exposure), integrity (unauthorized modifications), and availability (service disruption) for affected systems. Impacting 15 products from microsoft, from microsoft, from microsoft and 12 others, organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.

Historical Context

First disclosed in 2018, this vulnerability was reported during a period defined by widespread IoT adoption challenges, mobile security concerns, and the emergence of advanced persistent threat (APT) techniques. Contemporary mitigation strategies focused on secure development practices and third-party component vetting.

Published

2018-10-10T13:29:02.557

Last Modified

2025-10-28T14:13:07.773

Status

Analyzed

Source

[email protected]

Severity

CVSSv3.1: 7.8 (HIGH)

CVSSv2 Vector

AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Access Vector: LOCAL
Access Complexity: LOW
Authentication: NONE
Confidentiality Impact: COMPLETE
Integrity Impact: COMPLETE
Availability Impact: COMPLETE

Exploitability Score

3.9

Impact Score

10.0

Weaknesses

Type: Primary
NVD-CWE-noinfo

Affected Vendors & Products

Type	Vendor	Product	Version/Range	Vulnerable?
Operating System	microsoft	windows_10_1507	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_10_1607	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_10_1703	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_10_1709	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_10_1803	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_10_1809	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_7	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_8.1	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_rt_8.1	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_1709	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_1803	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_2008	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_2008	r2	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_2012	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_2012	r2	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_2016	-	Yes
Operating System	microsoft	windows_server_2019	-	Yes

References

http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/153669/Microsoft-Windows-NtUserSetWindowFNID-Win32k-User-Callback.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry ([email protected])
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/105467 Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry ([email protected])
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1041828 Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry ([email protected])
https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8453 Patch, Vendor Advisory ([email protected])
https://securelist.com/cve-2018-8453-used-in-targeted-attack Exploit, Technical Description, Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/153669/Microsoft-Windows-NtUserSetWindowFNID-Win32k-User-Callback.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/105467 Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1041828 Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8453 Patch, Vendor Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
https://securelist.com/cve-2018-8453-used-in-targeted-attack Exploit, Technical Description, Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2018-8453 US Government Resource (134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0)

How SecUtils Interprets This CVE

SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For microsoft's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.