Threats / Microsoft / CVE-2010-4398
CVE-2010-4398
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-06-22
Microsoft Windows vulnerability
Stack-based buffer overflow in RtlQueryRegistryValues function within win32k.sys allows local users to escalate privileges and bypass User Account Control.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
A local privilege escalation vulnerability in Windows kernel code enables attackers with user-level access to gain administrative control and circumvent UAC protections. Active exploitation in the wild increases risk.
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreReported exploitation
4 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-28).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.08661 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Microsoft, Windows. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-119 Memory Buffer Bounds Error — weakness family: Memory safety.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a malicious input to trigger a stack buffer overflow in the RtlQueryRegistryValues function.
Business
Attacker gains local code execution with elevated privileges, bypassing security boundaries.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I exploit the overflow to overwrite stack memory and redirect execution to arbitrary code.
Business
User Account Control is defeated, allowing unauthorized administrative actions on the system.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I establish persistent control or deploy malware with system-level permissions.
Business
Confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected system are fully compromised.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05