dbcve.org
Windows 10 1607Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2023-21678

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-01-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click

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
Windows Print Spooler 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 confidence

CVE-2023-21678 is an Elevation of Privilege vulnerability in the Windows Print Spooler service that allows an authenticated attacker to gain SYSTEM-level privileges. The vulnerability stems from improper privilege handling within the Print Spooler component, which has been a recurring target for privilege escalation attacks.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2023-21678 to affected Windows systems. If the Print Spooler service is not required, consider disabling it to reduce the attack surface.

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 1607Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 1809Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 20h2Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 21h2Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 22h2Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 11 21h2Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 11 22h2Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 7Operating system
Affected:all versions

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 retrieve the installed Windows version and build number
    Affected if The version displayed matches Windows 10 1607, 1809, 20h2, 21h2, 22h2, Windows 11 21h2, 22h2, or Windows 7 (any build)
  2. Verify Print Spooler service status
    Run 'Get-Service Spooler' in PowerShell or 'sc query spooler' in Command Prompt to check if the Print Spooler service is installed and running
    Affected if The service state shows as Running or Stopped (the service exists on the system, indicating the vulnerable component is present)
  3. Check for security update KB5022913
    Run 'Get-HotFix | Where-Object {$_.HotFixID -eq "KB5022913"}' in PowerShell or check Windows Update history for the installed security update dated February 2023
    Affected if The query returns no result, meaning KB5022913 (the CVE-2023-21678 patch) is not installed on the system

The system is affected if it runs an affected Windows version (10 1607/1809/20h2/21h2/22h2, 11 21h2/22h2, or Windows 7) AND the Print Spooler service exists on the system AND the February 2023 security update KB5022913 is not installed.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2023-21678 to affected Windows systems. If the Print Spooler service is not required, consider disabling it to reduce the attack surface.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Upgrade to the latest supported Windows version (Windows 10 22h2 or Windows 11 22h2) and maintain current security updates

  1. Open Windows Settings and navigate to Update & Security > Windows Update
  2. Click 'Check for updates' to ensure you have the latest Microsoft security patches
  3. Verify that the update containing the fix for CVE-2023-21678 is installed - this was addressed in Microsoft security updates (refer to MSRC for specific patch KB number)
  4. If automatic updates are disabled, enable them or manually download the applicable security update from Microsoft Update Catalog
  5. After installation, restart the computer to complete the patch deployment
  6. Confirm the Print Spooler service is running and the vulnerability is remediated

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

Fix this in Windows 10 1607 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2023-21678 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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