CVE-2011-1985

Exp

win32k.sys in the kernel-mode drivers in Microsoft Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2, R2, and R2 SP1, and Windows 7 Gold and SP1 does not properly validate user-mode input, which allows local users to gain privileges or cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and system crash) via a crafted application, aka "Win32k Null Pointer De-reference Vulnerability."

Published: 2011-10-12 Last update: 2026-04-29 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2011-1985 is rated High Exploit Risk (71/100): CVSS High severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 2.39%). 1 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

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

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2011-1985

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
18024 exploit_db edb 2011-10-23 Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2011-1985

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 3.37% 2.39% -0.99%
2 2026-01-29 4.95% 3.37% -1.58%
3 2025-12-28 — 4.95% —

Full EPSS history (13 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2011-1985

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.1 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 5.2 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-2011-1985

NVD evaluator notes for CVE-2011-1985

Comment: Per: http://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/476.html 'CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference'

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2011-1985

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
microsoft windows_2003_server — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_2003_server:*:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_7 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_7 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:x64:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_7 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:x86:*:*:*:*:*
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:*:sp2:x32:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:*:sp2:x64:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:sp2:itanium:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 r2 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:*:itanium:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 r2 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:*:x64:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_vista — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_vista:*:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_xp — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_xp:*:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_xp — cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_xp:-:sp2:x64:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2011-1985

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