Description

Heap-based buffer overflow in Windows NTFS allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "7.8",
  "pubDate": "2026-08-11T17:18:33.817Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-08-11T17:18:33.817Z",
  "executiveSummary": "This vulnerability is a heap-based buffer overflow affecting the Windows NTFS file system driver. Successful exploitation of this security flaw allows an authenticated local attacker to execute arbitrary code within kernel context and elevate privileges on the affected host. The vulnerability resides in the core file system component responsible for parsing structural attributes and managing memory buffers within the kernel space. Risk implications are severe, as an attacker who successfully achieves code execution at the kernel level can completely bypass operating system security controls, install persistent system-level backdoors, modify sensitive kernel structures, and compromise the integrity and confidentiality of the entire host system. Exploitation requirements dictate that the attacker must possess local access to the system and valid authorization credentials to interact with the file system interfaces, meaning remote network exploitation is not directly feasible without prior access. Security analysts must prioritize this local privilege escalation vector due to the elevated execution privileges associated with kernel-level vulnerabilities in the Windows operating system architecture.",
  "technicalDetails": "The vulnerability is a classic heap-based buffer overflow residing within the Windows NTFS kernel driver component. The root cause stems from improper boundary validation and insufficient size verification checks when processing specially crafted input or memory allocations within heap memory pools during file system operations. When the affected Windows NTFS component processes malicious or malformed data structures, it fails to accurately calculate the required buffer size before writing data to the heap, resulting in memory corruption.\nThe attack flow begins with an authenticated attacker interacting locally with the Windows NTFS file system. The attacker initiates specific system calls or file system operations designed to pass malformed data structures to the vulnerable driver. Due to the absence of adequate length checks in the vulnerable function, the driver allocates an insufficient heap buffer and subsequently writes excess data beyond the boundaries of the allocated chunk. This memory corruption overwrites adjacent heap metadata or critical kernel objects residing in the kernel heap pool.\nBy carefully manipulating the heap layout and controlling the overflow contents, the attacker can hijack control flow execution or corrupt function pointers within kernel memory. This exploitation method enables the execution of arbitrary payload instructions in Ring 0, the highest privilege level of the operating system. Consequently, the payload behavior includes modifying process token structures to elevate the attacker's security context from a standard user to NT AUTHORITY\\SYSTEM. The post-exploitation impact encompasses total system compromise, unauthorized access to restricted system resources, and complete circumvention of security boundary mechanisms."
}