CVE-2026-26165 | Windows Shell Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

Use after free in Windows Shell allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Published: 2026-04-14 Last update: 2026-04-24 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2026-26165 is rated Low Risk (33.7/100): CVSS High severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.05%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

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

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2026-26165

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 2026-05-16 0.04% 0.05% +0.01%
2 2026-04-20 0.06% 0.04% -0.01%
3 2026-04-15 — 0.06% —

Full EPSS history (3 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-26165

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.0 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
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.
 1.0 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-26165

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-26165

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
microsoft windows_11_23h2 < 10.0.22631.6936 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_23h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
microsoft windows_11_23h2 < 10.0.22631.6936 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_23h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
microsoft windows_11_24h2 < 10.0.26100.8246 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_24h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
microsoft windows_11_24h2 < 10.0.26100.8246 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_24h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
microsoft windows_11_25h2 < 10.0.26200.8246 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_25h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
microsoft windows_11_25h2 < 10.0.26200.8246 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_25h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
microsoft windows_11_26h1 < 10.0.28000.1836 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
microsoft windows_11_26h1 < 10.0.28000.1836 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
microsoft windows_server_2022 < 10.0.20348.5020 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2022:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2022_23h2 < 10.0.25398.2274 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2022_23h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2025 < 10.0.26100.32690 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2025:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-26165

cvelogic Threat Intelligence