Description
Insertion of sensitive information into externally-accessible file or directory in Windows Storage allows an authorized attacker to disclose information locally.
Published: 2026-10-13
Score: 5.5 Medium
EPSS: < 1% Very Low
KEV: No
Impact: Local Information Disclosure
Action: Apply Patch
AI Analysis

Impact

The vulnerability allows an attacker with local authorization to read sensitive data written to a file or directory that is externally accessible through Windows Storage. This information exposure violates confidentiality of the data without affecting integrity or availability. The weakness is identified as an insecure information disclosure flaw, classed under CWE‑538.

Affected Systems

Affected versions are Microsoft Windows 11 24H2, 25H2, 26H2, 26H1 and the corresponding Windows Server derivatives: Windows Server 2022, Windows Server 2025 and the Server Core installation of Windows Server 2025.

Risk and Exploitability

The CVSS score of 5.5 indicates moderate severity. The EPSS score is unavailable, so the exploit probability is not quantified, and the vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. The attack requires local authorization and access to the relevant storage managed by Windows Storage, suggesting an attacker must possess some privileged or user-level access to exploit the flaw.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on October 14, 2026 at 11:51 UTC.

Remediation

No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Install the Microsoft Security update associated with CVE‑2026‑96944 via Windows Update or WSUS as described in the Microsoft update guide.
  • Restrict external access to directories or files that store sensitive information, ensuring only necessary services can read them.
  • Audit and monitor file access logs for unexpected reads of the affected storage locations to detect potential exploitation attempts.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on October 14, 2026 at 11:51 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

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History

Sat, 24 Oct 2026 10:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
First Time appeared Microsoft windows Server 2025 (server Core Installation)
Vendors & Products Microsoft windows Server 2025 (server Core Installation)

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 11:00:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
First Time appeared Microsoft windows 11 24h2
Microsoft windows 11 25h2
Microsoft windows 11 26h1
Microsoft windows 11 26h2
CPEs cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_24h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_24h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_25h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_25h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_11_26h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2025:*:*:*:*:*:*:x64:*
Vendors & Products Microsoft windows 11 24h2
Microsoft windows 11 25h2
Microsoft windows 11 26h1
Microsoft windows 11 26h2

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 21:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics ssvc

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

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 19:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description Insertion of sensitive information into externally-accessible file or directory in Windows Storage allows an authorized attacker to disclose information locally.
Title Windows Storage Information Disclosure Vulnerability
First Time appeared Microsoft
Microsoft windows 11 24h2
Microsoft windows 11 25h2
Microsoft windows 11 26h1
Microsoft windows 11 Version 26h2 For Arm64-based Systems
Microsoft windows Server 2022
Microsoft windows Server 2025
Weaknesses CWE-538
CPEs cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:windows_11_version_26h2_for_arm64-based_systems:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
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:*:*:*:*:*:*:arm64:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2022:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2025:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Vendors & Products Microsoft
Microsoft windows 11 24h2
Microsoft windows 11 25h2
Microsoft windows 11 26h1
Microsoft windows 11 Version 26h2 For Arm64-based Systems
Microsoft windows Server 2022
Microsoft windows Server 2025
References
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 5.5, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N/E:U/RL:O/RC:C'}

Subscriptions

Microsoft Windows 11 24h2 Windows 11 24h2 Windows 11 25h2 Windows 11 25h2 Windows 11 26h1 Windows 11 26h1 Windows 11 26h2 Windows 11 Version 26h2 For Arm64-based Systems Windows Server 2022 Windows Server 2025 Windows Server 2025 (server Core Installation)
cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: microsoft

Published:

Updated: 2026-10-31T18:11:40.403Z

Reserved: 2026-09-23T20:35:19.928Z

Link: CVE-2026-96944

cve-icon Vulnrichment

Updated: 2026-10-13T19:38:56.950Z

cve-icon NVD

Status : Analyzed

Published: 2026-10-13T19:22:06.590

Modified: 2026-10-16T10:41:40.950

Link: CVE-2026-96944

cve-icon Redhat

No data.

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-10-24T10:30:14Z

Weaknesses
  • CWE-538

    Insertion of Sensitive Information into Externally-Accessible File or Directory