Windows Kernel: Local privilege escalation through race condition
Summary
A race condition (CWE-362) in the Windows kernel allows an authorized local user to elevate privileges to SYSTEM. The attacker needs a valid low-privilege account on the affected system and must win a timing race, which is complex to exploit. Microsoft lists Windows Server 2016, 2019, 2022 and 2025 as affected; the CVSS base score is 7.0. No exploitation is known.
Affected
- Windows Server 2016 (including Server Core) below 10.0.14393.9688
- Windows Server 2019 (including Server Core) below 10.0.17763.9487
- Windows Server 2022 below 10.0.20348.5870
- Windows Server 2025 (including Server Core) below 10.0.26100.33822
- Windows 10/11 desktop versions: Unknown, check the MSRC advisory
Fixed in
- Install the Microsoft security update that brings systems to the listed builds or higher.
- Exact KB numbers: Unknown, see the MSRC advisory.
Workaround
Unknown. No workaround or mitigation is documented in the sources reviewed. Apply the update.
Exploitation
- No evidence of exploitation in the wild found.
- No public proof of concept found.
- Not yet checked directly against the CISA KEV catalogue.
- The CVE record's exploit maturity value is "Unproven".
Our recommendation
- Confirm the affected and fixed builds on the MSRC advisory page.
- Patch Windows Server 2016, 2019, 2022 and 2025 in the next maintenance window, starting with servers used by many users.
- Identify unsupported Windows systems, as they will not receive this fix.
- Monitor for public exploit code or a KEV listing and re-prioritize if one appears.
Information from Microsoft (Patch Tuesday November 2026)
- Severity (Microsoft)
- Important
- Impact
- Elevation of privilege – Windows Kernel
- Status on Patch Tuesday
- Neither exploited nor publicly disclosed
- Exploitability assessment
- Exploitation less likely
- Product family
- Windows, Windows ESU (Extended Security Updates)
- Updates (KB)
- KB5131291, KB5131085, KB5131090, KB5131080, KB5131077
Public exploits
PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit and Exploit-DB list nothing for this CVE.
Research sources
- MSRC Security Update Guide: CVE-2026-119868 msrc.microsoft.com
- CVE.org record CVE-2026-119868 www.cve.org
- Strix: CVE-2026-119868 (third-party) www.strix.ai
- Intel mirror 901575 (third-party) cve.imfht.com
Researched and written up in English and German by an AI (Claude by Anthropic) based on NVD, CISA, EPSS and the sources listed. The vendor information is authoritative. Researched on 11 Nov 2026, 08:37.
Original description (NVD)
Concurrent execution using shared resource with improper synchronization ('race condition') in Windows Kernel allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
NVD references (1)
Sources
The tracker combines official, freely usable data sources – updated continuously:
- NVD (NIST) – CVEs, rating (CVSS), affected products
- CISA KEV – vulnerabilities confirmed by CISA as actively exploited
- CISA Vulnrichment – CISA assessment (SSVC) in the official CVE record
- FIRST EPSS – probability of exploitation
- Microsoft MSRC – Patch Tuesday: vulnerabilities, severity, updates
- PoC-in-GitHub – public proof-of-concept repositories
- Metasploit (Rapid7) – modules of the Metasploit Framework
- Exploit-DB (OffSec) – archive of public exploits (links only)
- Patch days: official vendor pages (linked per vendor) (Vendor patch days)
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS data © FIRST.org.
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