CVE-2010-3943
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedwin32k.sys in the kernel-mode drivers in Microsoft Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista SP1 and SP2, Windows Server 2008 Gold, SP2, and R2, and Windows 7 does not properly link driver objects, which allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted application that triggers linked-list corruption, aka "Win32k Cursor Linking Vulnerability."
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA vulnerability in win32k.sys kernel-mode drivers allows local users to gain elevated privileges through crafted applications that corrupt linked lists via improper driver object linking. The vulnerability affects multiple Windows versions from XP SP2 through Windows 7.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE dataall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Windows versionRun 'winver' from command prompt or check System Properties. Alternatively, run 'systeminfo' and look for OS Name and Version.Affected if The version is Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2003, or Windows Server 2008 (any service pack). These are all affected versions.
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Locate win32k.sys fileThe file is located at C:\Windows\System32\win32k.sys. Verify it exists using File Explorer or 'dir C:\Windows\System32\win32k.sys' from an elevated command prompt.Affected if If the file exists (which it normally does on all affected Windows versions), proceed to version check.
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Check win32k.sys file versionRight-click win32k.sys, select Properties, then Details tab. Alternatively, run 'wmic datafile where name="C:\\Windows\\System32\\win32k.sys" get Version,BuildVersion' from command prompt.Affected if Compare the file version against the vulnerable version ranges. Unpatched versions prior to the MS10-092 fix are vulnerable. The patched version varies by Windows version - compare against Microsoft's MS10-092 documentation.
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Verify security update installationOpen Control Panel > Programs and Features > View installed updates. Search for update KB2305420 (the MS10-092 update). Alternatively, run 'wmic qfe get HotFixID,InstalledOn | findstr /i KB2305420' from command prompt.Affected if If KB2305420 (MS10-092) or a later superseding security update is NOT listed among installed updates, the system remains vulnerable regardless of win32k.sys version.
A system is affected if it runs any Windows XP through Windows 7 or Windows Server 2003/2008 version AND the MS10-092 security update (KB2305420) or a later superseding patch is not installed.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataApply Microsoft security update MS10-092 (or subsequent superseding patches) to address the win32k.sys vulnerability. As this is a kernel-level flaw, no effective workarounds exist beyond patching.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2010-3943 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2010-3943 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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