CVE-2016-3310
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 · uneditedThe kernel-mode drivers in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2; Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1; Windows 7 SP1; Windows 8.1; Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2; Windows RT 8.1; and Windows 10 Gold, 1511, and 1607 allow local users to gain privileges via a crafted application, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability," a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-3308, CVE-2016-3309, and CVE-2016-3311.
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 confidenceWin32k elevation of privilege vulnerability in Windows kernel-mode drivers allows a local authenticated attacker to run crafted code and gain elevated privileges. The flaw exists in the win32k.sys driver and affects multiple Windows versions from Vista to Windows 10.
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 versions= 1511= 1607all versionsall versionsall versionsall versions= r2all versions= r2all 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
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to determine the installed Windows edition and versionAffected if The version is Windows Vista, 7, 8.1, Rt 8.1, 10 (any version), Server 2008, Server 2012, or Server 2012 R2 - these are all in the affected range
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Check if MS16-101 security update is installedRun 'wmic qfe list | findstr "3139914"' or 'Get-HotFix -Id "3139914"' to verify if the MS16-101 patch is presentAffected if The security update KB3139914 (MS16-101) is NOT installed - the system is vulnerable
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Verify win32k.sys driver versionRun 'dir C:\Windows\System32\win32k.sys' and note the file version, then compare against the version shipped with MS16-101Affected if The win32k.sys file version is older than the patched version for your Windows build, indicating the vulnerability is present
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Confirm local authenticated accessVerify that an unprivileged local user account exists on the system (run 'net user' to list accounts)Affected if The system has local user accounts - the vulnerability requires a local authenticated attacker to execute crafted code
The system is affected if it runs any affected Windows version (Vista, 7, 8.1, 8.1 RT, 10, Server 2008, Server 2012, Server 2012 R2) AND lacks the MS16-101 security update (KB3139914) - in this condition, a local authenticated user could exploit win32k.sys to gain elevated privileges.
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 updates (MS16-101 or subsequent relevant patches) to address the Win32k.sys vulnerability. Restrict local user privileges and monitor for suspicious local privilege escalation attempts as defense-in-depth.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-3310 — 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-2016-3310 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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- 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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