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Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 24 Mar 2022.
Windows 10 1507Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2017-0001

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2017-03-17
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
96/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild Zero-click Patch available

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 · unedited
The Graphics Device Interface (GDI) 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 allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted application, aka "Windows GDI Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This vulnerability is different from those described in CVE-2017-0005, CVE-2017-0025, and CVE-2017-0047.

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 confidence

A local privilege escalation vulnerability in the Windows Graphics Device Interface (GDI) allows authenticated local users to gain elevated privileges by running a specially crafted malicious application. The vulnerability affects multiple Windows versions from Vista/Server 2008 through Windows 10 versions 1511 and 1607.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update (MS17-006) to all affected systems. Prioritize workstations and servers where untrusted local users could execute code. Deploy application whitelacking as an additional defense-in-depth measure.

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 data
Windows 10 1507Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 1511Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 1607Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 7Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 8.1Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows Rt 8.1Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows Server 2008Operating system
Affected:all versions= r2
Windows Server 2012Operating system
Affected:all versions= r2

CVSS 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:3.1/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Windows version
    Run 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to determine the exact Windows version and build number
    Affected if The version is Windows 10 1507, 1511, or 1607; Windows 7 any version; Windows 8.1 any version; Windows Rt 8.1; Windows Server 2008/2008 R2; or Windows Server 2012/2012 R2
  2. Verify MS17-006 security update is installed
    Run 'wmic qfe list' or check 'Control Panel > Programs and Features > View installed updates' for security update KB4012216 (or related GDI security patch from MS17-006)
    Affected if The security update from MS17-006 is NOT installed on the system
  3. Confirm GDI component version
    Check the file version of gdi32.dll by running 'dir /a %windir%\system32\gdi32.dll' or using 'wmic datafile where "name='C:\\Windows\\system32\\gdi32.dll'" get Version'
    Affected if The gdi32.dll version is lower than the patched version for your Windows build (this confirms the vulnerability exists)
  4. Assess local user access
    Review local user accounts and groups using 'net user' and 'net localgroup' to determine if there are untrusted or low-privilege local users who could log on and execute code
    Affected if Untrusted or low-privilege local users have the ability to log on and run executables on the system

The system is affected if it runs a vulnerable Windows version from the affected list AND lacks the MS17-006 security update, allowing a local authenticated user to potentially escalate privileges via the GDI vulnerability.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Vendor patch portal.msrc.microsoft.com →
Interim mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update (MS17-006) to all affected systems. Prioritize workstations and servers where untrusted local users could execute code. Deploy application whitelacking as an additional defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

For Windows 10 1507/1511/1607: upgrade to Windows 10 1703 or later (ensure compatibility). For Windows 7/Server 2008 R2: migrate to supported OS (Windows Server 2016/2019, Windows 10 1809+). For Windows 8.1/Server 2012 R2: apply available patches or migrate to Windows Server 2016/2019

  1. Identify the specific Windows version and build number by running 'winver' or 'systeminfo' in Command Prompt
  2. Check Microsoft Security Bulletin or MSRC for CVE-2017-0001 to locate the applicable security update for your specific Windows version
  3. Download and install the relevant security update from Windows Update or the Microsoft Update Catalog
  4. Restart the system after applying the patch to ensure the GDI component is fully updated
  5. Verify the patch was successfully installed by checking the installed updates (Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features > View installed updates)
Caveat Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012, and Windows 10 1507/1511 have reached end of support; no further security patches available - migration to supported OS required

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Windows 10 1507 Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,640
Get it fixed fast

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,224.

Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-0001 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data