The Group Policy implementation in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2 does not properly handle distribution of passwords, which allows remote authenticated users to obtain sensitive credential information and consequently gain privileges by leveraging access to the SYSVOL share, as exploited in the wild in May 2014, aka "Group Policy Preferences Password Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
Conclusion & alert: CVE-2014-1812 is rated Critical Active Threat (89.9/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 64.31%, 99th percentile). Core evidence: CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2021-11-03) affecting Microsoft / Windows. a weakness (CWE-255) Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. Mandatory action: 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.
: Microsoft Windows Group Policy Preferences Password Privilege Escalation Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail
: 2021-11-03
: 2022-05-03
: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
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 | 74.63% | 64.31% | -10.32% |
| 2 | 2026-05-21 | 83.76% | 74.63% | -9.13% |
| 3 | 2026-04-23 | — | 83.76% | — |
Full EPSS history (32 records total)
CVSS metrics for this CVE.
| Base score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability | Impact | Score source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.8 | 3.1 | HIGH |
|
2.8 | 5.9 | 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 |
| 9.0 | 2.0 | HIGH |
|
8.0 | 10.0 | [email protected] |
| Vendor | Product | Version | Raw CPE |
|---|---|---|---|
| microsoft | windows_7 | — | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| microsoft | windows_8 | — | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_8:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| microsoft | windows_8.1 | — | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| 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:sp1:*:*:*:*:itanium:* |
| microsoft | windows_server_2008 | r2 | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:sp1:*:*:*:*:x64:* |
| microsoft | windows_server_2012 | — | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| microsoft | windows_server_2012 | r2 | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:r2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| microsoft | windows_vista | — | cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_vista:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| URL | Tags |
|---|---|
| http://blogs.technet.com/b/srd/archive/2014/05/13/ms14-025-an-update-for-group-policy-preferences.aspx | Third Party Advisory |
| https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2014/ms14-025 | Patch Vendor Advisory |
| https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2014-1812 | US Government Resource |