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Windows 10 21h2Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2024-21442

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-03-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0.19044.4170 / 10.0.19045.4170 or later.
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 USB Print Driver 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

This is an elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Windows USB Print Driver. An authenticated attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could gain higher system privileges on the affected Windows machine. The USB Print Driver likely contains a flaw that allows a local attacker to escalate from standard user to elevated privileges.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2024-21442 through Windows Update or manually download the patch from Microsoft's security update catalog. After patching, verify that USB printing functionality continues to operate correctly.

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 21h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19044.4170
Windows 10 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19045.4170
Windows 11 21h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.22000.2836
Windows 11 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.22621.3296
Windows 11 23h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.22631.3296
Windows Server 2022Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.20348.2340
Windows Server 2022 23h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.25398.763

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. Check Windows build number
    Open Command Prompt or PowerShell and run 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Version"' to display the Windows build number
    Affected if The build number is lower than the fixed versions: 19044.4170 (Win10 21h2), 19045.4170 (Win10 22h2), 22000.2836 (Win11 21h2), 22621.3296 (Win11 22h2), 22631.3296 (Win11 23h2), 20348.2340 (Server 2022), 25398.763 (Server 2022 23h2)
  2. Verify PowerShell build details
    Run 'Get-ComputerInfo | Select-Object WindowsProductName, WindowsVersion, OsHardwareAbstractionLayer' in PowerShell to get detailed version information
    Affected if The displayed Windows version falls within the affected version ranges and is below the patched build numbers listed above
  3. Confirm USB Print Driver presence
    Open Device Manager, expand 'Printers' or check for USB printing-related drivers. Alternatively, run 'pnputil /enum-drivers' to list installed printer drivers
    Affected if A USB Print Driver is installed on the system (this component must be present for the vulnerability to apply)

The system is affected if it runs an unpatched Windows version within the affected build ranges AND has the USB Print Driver present, as the vulnerability resides in the built-in Windows USB Print Driver component.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 10.0.19044.4170 / 10.0.19045.4170 / 10.0.20348.2340 or later
Fixed in 10.0.19044.417010.0.19045.417010.0.20348.2340
Interim mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2024-21442 through Windows Update or manually download the patch from Microsoft's security update catalog. After patching, verify that USB printing functionality continues to operate correctly.

Recommended fix High confidence

Build numbers: Windows 10 21h2 -> 10.0.19044.4170, Windows 10 22h2 -> 10.0.19045.4170, Windows 11 21h2 -> 10.0.22000.2836, Windows 11 22h2 -> 10.0.22621.3296, Windows 11 23h2 -> 10.0.22631.3296, Server 2022 -> 10.0.20348.2340, Server 2022 23h2 -> 10.0.25398.763

  1. Open Settings on the affected Windows system
  2. Navigate to Windows Update (Update & Security > Windows Update)
  3. Click 'Check for updates' to download and install the latest security updates
  4. Alternatively, manually download the specific security update from the Microsoft Update Catalog (search for KB5002537 or the relevant CVE patch for your Windows version)
  5. Restart the system after the update is installed
  6. Verify the update was installed by checking Windows Update history
Caveat Standard Windows security patch; no expected breaking changes for this EoP vulnerability fix

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

Fix this in Windows 10 21h2 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
Get the upgrade done

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

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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-2024-21442 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