CVE-2022-23291
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 · uneditedWindows DWM Core Library Elevation of Privilege 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 · moderate confidenceThis is an elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Windows Desktop Window Manager (DWM) Core Library. DWM is responsible for managing window rendering and compositing in Windows. The vulnerability could allow a local attacker to gain higher privileges on the affected system.
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= 20h2= 21h1= 21h2= 1809= 1909all versions= 20h2= 2022all 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:3.1/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed Windows versionRun 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' or open winver to see the exact Windows version and build numberAffected if The version shown matches Windows 10 versions 1809, 1909, 20h2, 21h1, or 21h2; Windows 11 any version; Windows Server 2019 any version; Windows Server 20h2 or 2022
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Verify DWM Core service is presentCheck that the Desktop Window Manager (DWM) service exists by running 'sc query DWM' or checking Task Manager for dwm.exe processesAffected if The DWM service is present and running (this is the default state on most Windows systems)
Your system is affected if it runs any of the listed Windows versions and has DWM enabled, which is the default configuration on most Windows installations.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2022-23291, typically delivered via Windows Update or as part of the monthly patch Tuesday releases.
Install Microsoft January 2022 Security Updates (or later) - specific KB varies by Windows version
- Check current Windows version by running 'winver' or 'systeminfo'
- Open Settings > Windows Update or run 'ms-settings:windowsupdate'
- Click 'Check for updates' and install all available security updates
- For Windows Server, use Windows Update for Business, WSUS, or manually download updates from Microsoft Update Catalog
- Restart the system after updates are installed
- Verify the vulnerability is patched by checking installed updates for KB5009543 (Windows 10 20H2), KB5009545 (Windows 10 21H1/21H2), KB5009546 (Windows 10 1809), or KB5009557 (Windows 11/Server 2022)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 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 $1,424.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-23291 — 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-2022-23291 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data