Description
Use after free in Windows Backup Engine allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Published: 2026-07-14
Score: 7 High
EPSS: < 1% Very Low
KEV: No
Impact: n/a
Action: n/a
AI Analysis

Impact

The vulnerability is a use‑after‑free condition in the Windows Backup Engine that allows an attacker who already has local system access to execute code with elevated rights beyond those originally granted, leading to privilege escalation. The weakness is classified as CWE‑416.

Affected Systems

The flaw affects Microsoft Windows 10 versions 21H2 and 22H2, and Microsoft Windows 11 versions 24H2, 25H2, and 26H1 on the processor architectures specified in the official CPE entries (x86 for 21H2, x64 for 22H2, arm64 for 24H2 and 25H2, and x64 for 26H1).

Risk and Exploitability

The CVSS score of 7 indicates high severity and the EPSS score of < 1 % reflects a very low current exploitation probability. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog, indicating no known large‑scale attacks. The flaw is a use‑after‑free in the Windows Backup Engine and requires the attacker to already possess local system access to trigger. The affected Windows versions are 10 21H2 (x86), 10 22H2 (x64), 11 24H2 (arm64), 11 25H2 (arm64), and 11 26H1 (x64), as defined by the official CPE entries.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on August 3, 2026 at 03:19 UTC.

Remediation

No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE‑2026‑50406 to all affected Windows 10 and Windows 11 installations.
  • Ensure the Windows Backup service runs under a dedicated, least‑privileged account instead of an administrator account.
  • Limit local administrator access and implement least‑privilege policies on all user accounts to reduce the impact of a local compromise.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on August 3, 2026 at 03:19 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

No advisories yet.

History

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 15:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics ssvc

{'options': {'Automatable': 'no', 'Exploitation': 'none', 'Technical Impact': 'total'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 17:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description Use after free in Windows Backup Engine allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Title Windows Backup Engine Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
First Time appeared Microsoft
Microsoft windows 10 21h2
Microsoft windows 10 22h2
Microsoft windows 11 24h2
Microsoft windows 11 25h2
Microsoft windows 11 26h1
Weaknesses CWE-416
CPEs cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_21H2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x86:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_22H2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_24H2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_25H2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26H1:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
Vendors & Products Microsoft
Microsoft windows 10 21h2
Microsoft windows 10 22h2
Microsoft windows 11 24h2
Microsoft windows 11 25h2
Microsoft windows 11 26h1
References
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 7, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C'}

Subscriptions

Microsoft Windows 10 21h2 Windows 10 22h2 Windows 11 24h2 Windows 11 25h2 Windows 11 26h1
cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: microsoft

Published:

Updated: 2026-07-30T20:25:13.704Z

Reserved: 2026-06-04T18:56:53.259Z

Link: CVE-2026-50406

cve-icon Vulnrichment

Updated: 2026-07-15T13:29:34.907Z

cve-icon NVD

No data.

cve-icon Redhat

No data.

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-08-03T03:30:13Z

Weaknesses