CVE-2010-4398

Exp

Stack-based buffer overflow in the RtlQueryRegistryValues function in win32k.sys in Microsoft Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista SP1 and SP2, Windows Server 2008 Gold, SP2, and R2, and Windows 7 allows local users to gain privileges, and bypass the User Account Control (UAC) feature, via a crafted REG_BINARY value for a SystemDefaultEUDCFont registry key, aka "Driver Improper Interaction with Windows Kernel Vulnerability."

Published: 2010-12-06 Last update: 2026-06-16 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2010-4398 is rated Critical Active Threat (90.2/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 8.66%, 94th percentile). CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2022-03-28) affecting Microsoft / Windows. a weakness (CWE-787) Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. The CISA remediation deadline has passed—treat as an emergency patch priority.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

CISA KEV Record for CVE-2010-4398

Name: Microsoft Windows Kernel Stack-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail

Exploit added: 2022-03-28

Action due: 2022-04-21

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2010-4398

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
15609 exploit_db edb 2010-11-24 Exploit-DB ↗
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2010-4398

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 7.75% 8.66% +0.91%
2 2026-05-22 7.94% 7.75% -0.19%
3 2026-04-26 — 7.94% —

Full EPSS history (30 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2010-4398

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 5.9 [email protected]
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 5.9 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
7.2 2.0 HIGH
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:L)
Requires local access to the target system.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 3.9 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2010-4398

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2010-4398

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
microsoft windows_7 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2003 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2003:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 r2 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_vista — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_vista:-:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_vista — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_vista:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_xp — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_xp:-:sp2:*:*:professional:*:x64:*
microsoft windows_xp — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_xp:-:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2010-4398

URL Tags
http://isc.sans.edu/diary.html?storyid=9988 Exploit Issue Tracking
http://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2010/11/25/new-windows-zero-day-flaw-bypasses-uac/ Broken Link
http://secunia.com/advisories/42356 Broken Link Vendor Advisory
http://support.avaya.com/css/P8/documents/100127248 Third Party Advisory
http://twitter.com/msftsecresponse/statuses/7590788200402945 Not Applicable
http://www.exploit-db.com/bypassing-uac-with-user-privilege-under-windows-vista7-mirror/ Broken Link Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/15609/ Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/529673 Third Party Advisory US Government Resource
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/45045 Broken Link Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.securitytracker.com/id?1025046 Broken Link Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2011/0324 Broken Link
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2011/ms11-011 Patch Vendor Advisory
https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A12162 Broken Link
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2010-4398 US Government Resource
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