CVE-2020-1082: Windows Error Reporting Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
Noroxi assessment
Priority: Monitor (action score 31/100)
- The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
- Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.98% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 62.3% of all records.
- Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
- According to the record, no fixed version is available yet.
Low priority for now. Update when a fix is released; 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 · FIRST EPSS
An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows Error Reporting (WER) when WER handles and executes files. The vulnerability could allow elevation of privilege if an attacker can successfully exploit it. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could gain greater access to sensitive information and system functionality. To exploit the vulnerability, an attacker could run a specially crafted application. The security update addresses the vulnerability by correcting the way that WER handles and executes files.
- Published
- May 21, 2020
- Updated
- Aug 19, 2026
- EPSS
- 0.9% · 62th percentile
- CWE
- CWE-22
Report tools
Action score
31
Monitor
Low priority for now.
- CVSS
- 31 / 40 · 7.8 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 0 / 30 · 0.9%
CNA vs NVD score
- NVD
- 7.8
- CNA · microsoft
- 7.8
- agree
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C
The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.
Get told when this record changes
- Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
- No public exploit code on record
- No fixed version yet
If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.
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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.
We use this product, ask for helpAffected 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.
| Vendor | Product | CPE |
|---|---|---|
| microsoft | windows 10 | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10 |
| microsoft | windows server | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server |
| microsoft | windows server 2016 | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016 |
| microsoft | windows server 2019 | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2019 |
Affected versions
NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.
- microsoft windows server1803
- microsoft windows server 2016all versions
- microsoft windows server 20161903
- microsoft windows server 20161909
- 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 Server 2016
- 10.0.14393.0 and later · before publicationaffected
Microsoft Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation)
- 10.0.14393.0 and later · before publicationaffected
Same product
microsoft: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2015-2426Buffer underflow in atmfd.dll in the Windows Adobe Type Manager Library in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, KEV91Now
- CVE-2022-21907HTTP Protocol Stack Remote Code Execution Vulnerability67This week
- CVE-2022-26809Remote Procedure Call Runtime Remote Code Execution Vulnerability66This week
Published before and after this one in the same product
- ← EarlierCVE-2020-1079May 21, 2020 · Microsoft Windows Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability31Monitor
- ← EarlierCVE-2020-1081May 21, 2020 · Windows Printer Service Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability31Monitor
- Later →CVE-2020-1084May 21, 2020 · Connected User Experiences and Telemetry Service Denial of Service Vulnerability22Monitor
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
No known public exploit
No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.
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.
No dated events beyond publication.
No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).
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 researchersFinders, 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.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
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
- Low
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- High
- Integrity impact
- High
- Availability impact
- High
Weakness class (CWE)
CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
nvd-primary
Root cause
A user-supplied file name is joined with the allowed directory, but the result is never checked to confirm it is still inside that directory.
The bug in code
The whole CWE-22 classA representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.
Vulnerable
const file = path.join(ROOT, req.query.name);
res.sendFile(file);Fixed
const file = path.resolve(ROOT, req.query.name);
if (!file.startsWith(ROOT + path.sep)) {
return res.sendStatus(400);
}
res.sendFile(file);Attack context
MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.
Attack patterns (CAPEC)
- Path TraversalCAPEC-126likelihood: High · Very High
- Using Slashes and URL Encoding Combined to Bypass Validation LogicCAPEC-64likelihood: High · High
- Manipulating Web Input to File System CallsCAPEC-76likelihood: High · Very High
- Using Escaped Slashes in Alternate EncodingCAPEC-78likelihood: High · High
- Using Slashes in Alternate EncodingCAPEC-79likelihood: High · High
ATT&CK techniques
—
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)Show less
Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.