dbcve.org
Windows 11 26h1Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2026-44804

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-06-09
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0.28000.2269 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
Use after free in Windows DWM Core Library allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

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

Use after free vulnerability in Windows DWM Core Library (dwmcore.dll) allowing local privilege escalation. The vulnerability involves improper memory management where the DWM continues accessing memory after it has been freed, potentially enabling an authenticated local attacker to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates addressing this vulnerability through standard patch management. Given the local privilege escalation vector, prioritize patching workstations and servers with direct user access.

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 11 26h1Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.28000.2269

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. Confirm Windows 11 26h1 edition
    Run 'winver' from command prompt or check System Information (msinfo32). Look for 'Version 26H1' under the Windows specification.
    Affected if The OS is NOT Windows 11 version 26H1 (the vulnerability only affects this specific version)
  2. Check Windows build number
    Run 'systeminfo' or 'winver' and locate the 'OS Build' number. For 26H1, this should be in the 28000 range.
    Affected if The build number is 28000.x but below 28000.2269, or if it shows a version outside the 26H1 range
  3. Identify DWM Core Library version
    Locate the DWM core library file (typically dwmcore.dll in C:\Windows\System32 or C:\Windows\System32\DWM). Right-click the file, select Properties, and view the File version field.
    Affected if The DWM core library file version is present but below 10.0.28000.2269
  4. Query Windows version via registry
    Run 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion" /v CurrentBuildNumber' and 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion" /v UBR' from an elevated command prompt to get precise build details.
    Affected if CurrentBuildNumber is less than 28000, or equals 28000 but UBR (Update Build Revision) is less than 2269

User is affected if running Windows 11 version 26H1 with build numbers below 10.0.28000.2269, where the DWM Core Library matches this vulnerable version range.

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 10.0.28000.2269 or later
Fixed in 10.0.28000.2269
Interim mitigation

Apply Microsoft security updates addressing this vulnerability through standard patch management. Given the local privilege escalation vector, prioritize patching workstations and servers with direct user access.

Recommended fix High confidence

Windows 11 26h1 version 10.0.28000.2269 or later

  1. Open Settings > Windows Update and check for available updates
  2. Install all pending security updates, specifically looking for updates that address this CVE
  3. Restart the computer if prompted to complete the installation
  4. Verify the update was applied by running 'winver' and confirming the version is 10.0.28000.2269 or higher
  5. Alternatively, use Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) or Microsoft Update Catalog to manually search for and apply the relevant security update

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

Fix this in Windows 11 26h1 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,088.

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-2026-44804 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