dbcve.org
Windows 10 1607Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2026-20922

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-01-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0.14393.8783 / 10.0.17763.8276 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
Heap-based buffer overflow in Windows NTFS allows an authorized attacker to execute code locally.

In the news

Third-party coverage
Trending covered by 2 outlets this week · latest 7mo ago

Surfaced from public web coverage — external links open in a new tab.

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

Heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Windows NTFS allows a locally authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code by overflowing a heap buffer in the NTFS file system driver.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates for Windows when available; prioritize patching end-user workstations and servers to prevent local privilege escalation attacks.

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:< 10.0.14393.8783
Windows 10 1809Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.17763.8276
Windows 10 21h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19044.6809
Windows 10 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19045.6809
Windows 11 23h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.22631.6491
Windows 11 24h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.26100.7623
Windows 11 25h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.26200.7623
Windows Server 2008Operating 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. Check Windows build version
    Run 'winver' from the Run dialog or execute 'systeminfo' in Command Prompt and look at the 'OS Version' line. Alternatively, run 'winmgmts:\\.\root\cimv2:Win32_OperatingSystem' via PowerShell with '(Get-CimInstance Win32_OperatingSystem).BuildNumber'
    Affected if The build number is less than 14393.8783 (Windows 10 1607), less than 17763.8276 (Windows 10 1809), less than 19044.6809 (Windows 10 21h2), less than 19045.6809 (Windows 10 22h2), less than 22631.6491 (Windows 11 23h2), less than 26100.7623 (Windows 11 24h2), or less than 26200.7623 (Windows 11 25h2
  2. Confirm NTFS file system is in use
    Open Command Prompt and run 'fsutil fsinfo volumeinfo C:' (or any mounted volume). Look for 'File System Name : NTFS' in the output. Alternatively, run 'Get-Volume' in PowerShell and check the 'FileSystem' column
    Affected if The volume is formatted as NTFS (note: NTFS is the default file system for Windows system volumes, so most systems will qualify)
  3. Verify Windows Server 2008 version if applicable
    If the system is Windows Server 2008 or Server 2008 R2, run 'winver' or check the registry key 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion' to confirm the exact build. For Server 2008, the version string will be 6.0.x; for Server 2008 R2, it will be 6.1.x
    Affected if The system is any version of Windows Server 2008 or Server 2008 R2 (all versions of this product are affected per the advisory)

A system is affected if it runs any of the listed Windows 10 or Windows 11 builds below the fixed versions, or any version of Windows Server 2008/2008 R2, AND uses NTFS as the file system (which is the default).

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 10.0.14393.8783 / 10.0.17763.8276 / 10.0.19044.6809 or later
Fixed in 10.0.14393.878310.0.17763.827610.0.19044.6809
Interim mitigation

Apply Microsoft security updates for Windows when available; prioritize patching end-user workstations and servers to prevent local privilege escalation attacks.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Windows 10 1607 build 10.0.14393.8783+, Windows 10 1809 build 10.0.17763.8276+, Windows 10 21h2 build 10.0.19044.6809+, Windows 10 22h2 build 10.0.19045.6809+, Windows 11 23h2 build 10.0.22631.6491+, Windows 11 24h2 build 10.0.26100.7623+, or Windows 11 25h2 build 10.0.26200.7623+; Window

  1. Check current Windows build version by running 'winver' or 'systeminfo' in Command Prompt
  2. Open Windows Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update
  3. Click 'Check for updates' to install the latest Microsoft security patches
  4. Alternatively, manually download and install the specific KB patch from the Microsoft Update Catalog for your Windows version
  5. Verify the update was installed successfully by checking Windows Update history
  6. Restart the system if prompted to complete the installation
Caveat Windows Server 2008/R2 is no longer supported by Microsoft and requires migration to a supported Windows Server version; ensure application compatibility before upgrading client Windows versions

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
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,570
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,512.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-20922 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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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-2026-20922 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