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NVD / CVE Program· CNA microsoft

CVE-2020-1054: Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

Noroxi assessment

Priority: This week (action score 74/100)

  • CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild (Nov 3, 2021). Remediation deadline for US federal agencies: May 3, 2022.
  • A ready-made attack module is public (Metasploit); exploiting it takes no special expertise.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 53.8% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 99% of all records.
  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.
  • According to the record, no fixed version is available yet.

Don’t wait for the next maintenance window. Until a fix is released, restrict access to the affected component and follow the vendor's advisory.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · CISA KEV · FIRST EPSS

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows when the Windows kernel-mode driver fails to properly handle objects in memory. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could run arbitrary code in kernel mode. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would first have to log on to the system. An attacker could then run a specially crafted application that could exploit the vulnerability and take control of an affected system. The update addresses this vulnerability by correcting how the Windows kernel-mode driver handles objects in memory.

HighCVSS 7.0 · v3.1KEVWeaponized No fix recorded
Published
May 21, 2020
Updated
Oct 8, 2026
EPSS
53.8% · 99th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

74

This week

Don’t wait for the next maintenance window.

CVSS
28 / 40 · 7.0 / 10
CISA KEV
30 / 30 · Listed
EPSS
16 / 30 · 53.8%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
active
Automatable
no
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
7.0
CNA · microsoft
7.8
0.8 point gap

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Actively exploited in the wild

CISA added this to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on Nov 3, 2021. That signals real attacks, not theory.

Remediation deadline for US federal agencies: May 3, 2022.

Get told when this record changes

  • In CISA KEV: exploitation in the wild confirmed
  • Weaponized exploit exists
  • No fixed version yet

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2020-1054

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
microsoftwindows 10 1507
microsoftwindows 10 1607
microsoftwindows 10 1709
microsoftwindows 10 1803
microsoftwindows 10 1809
microsoftwindows 10 1903
microsoftwindows 10 1909
microsoftwindows 7
microsoftwindows 8.1
microsoftwindows rt 8.1
microsoftwindows server 1803
microsoftwindows server 1903

and 5 more

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • microsoft windows 10 1507all versions
  • microsoft windows 10 1607all versions
  • microsoft windows 10 1709all versions
  • microsoft windows 10 1803all versions
  • microsoft windows 10 1809all versions
  • microsoft windows 10 1903all versions
  • microsoft windows 10 1909all versions
  • microsoft windows 7all versions
  • microsoft windows 8.1all versions
  • microsoft windows rt 8.1all versions
  • microsoft windows server 1803all versions
  • microsoft windows server 1903all versions
  • microsoft windows server 1909all versions
  • microsoft windows server 2008all versions
  • microsoft windows server 2008r2
  • microsoft windows server 2012all versions
  • microsoft windows server 2012r2
  • microsoft windows server 2016all versions
  • microsoft windows server 2019all versions

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (microsoft). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1507

    • 10.0.10240.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1607

    • 10.0.14393.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1709

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1709 for 32-bit Systems

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1803

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1809

    • 10.0.17763.0 and later · before publicationaffected
    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1903 for 32-bit Systems

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1903 for ARM64-based Systems

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1903 for x64-based Systems

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1909

    • 10.0.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 7

    • 6.1.0 and later · before publicationaffected

  • Microsoft Windows 7 Service Pack 1

    • 6.1.0 and later · before publicationaffected

Same product

microsoft: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2021-34527Windows Print Spooler Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityKEV
    95Now
  • CVE-2021-40444Microsoft MSHTML Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityKEV
    94Now
  • CVE-2025-33053Internet Shortcut Files Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityKEV
    91Now

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2020-1020Apr 15, 2020 · A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Microsoft Windows when the Windows Adobe Type Manager Library improperly handles a speciallyKEV
    85Now
  • ← EarlierCVE-2020-1027Apr 15, 2020 · An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in the way that the Windows Kernel handles objects in memory, aka 'Windows Kernel Elevation oKEV
    62This week
  • Later →CVE-2020-0986Jun 9, 2020 · An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows kernel fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka 'Windows Kernel ElevaKEV
    66This week

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

  • Metasploit module ×1
  • Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×4

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Metasploit moduleexploit/windows/local/cve_2020_1054_drawiconex_lpeMicrosoft Windows DrawIconEx OOB Write Local Privilege Elevationexploit2020-02-20
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:872020-06-16
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:42020-07-19
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:202020-07-25
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02020-10-28

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Metasploit-92 d
  2. Published
  3. First PoC+25 d
  4. CISA KEV+530 d
  5. TodayNov 7, 2026+2361 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • A low-privileged account is enough.
  • No user action is required.
  • Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
High
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-787 · Out-of-bounds Write

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

Show all references (2 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records