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Windows 10 1809Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2026-45637

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-06-09
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0.17763.8880 / 10.0.19044.7417 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

A use-after-free vulnerability in the Windows DWM Core Library (Desktop Window Manager) allows a local authenticated attacker to manipulate freed memory and achieve privilege escalation to higher integrity levels.

MitigationApply Microsoft security patches for this vulnerability to affected Windows versions; as compensating controls, limit local user privileges and monitor for anomalous DWM processes.

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 1809Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.17763.8880
Windows 10 21h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19044.7417
Windows 10 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19045.7417
Windows 11 23h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.22631.7219
Windows 11 24h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.26100.8655
Windows 11 25h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.26200.8655
Windows 11 26h1Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.28000.2269
Windows Server 2019Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.17763.8880

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 check the registry key 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion' for the Build Number and CurrentBuild. Alternatively, run 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"'
    Affected if The build number is lower than the thresholds in the affected versions list (e.g., below 17763.8880 for Windows 10 1809/Server 2019, below 19044.7417 for Windows 10 21h2, etc.)
  2. Confirm DWM Core Library is present
    Verify that the file C:\Windows\System32\dwmcore.dll exists. If the file is missing, the vulnerability does not apply. Use 'Test-Path C:\Windows\System32\dwmcore.dll' in PowerShell
    Affected if The file exists and its version cannot be verified or is below the patched version for your Windows build
  3. Check DWM Core Library version
    Run 'Get-Item C:\Windows\System32\dwmcore.dll | Select-Object Name, VersionInfo' in PowerShell or right-click the DLL in File Explorer, go to Properties, and check the File Version field
    Affected if The file version shown is lower than the version corresponding to your Windows build's fixed version (e.g., for 10.0.19045.x builds the fixed version is 10.0.19045.7417 or higher)
  4. Verify Desktop Window Manager service status
    Run 'Get-Service DWM' in PowerShell or check the Desktop Window Manager service in services.msc. The vulnerability requires DWM to be running
    Affected if The DWM service is running (Status equals 'Running') and the library version is below the fixed version for your Windows build

A system is affected if it runs a Windows version with a build number below the affected thresholds AND the DWM Core Library (dwmcore.dll) version is below the fixed version for that build AND DWM is actively running.

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 10.0.17763.8880 / 10.0.19044.7417 / 10.0.19045.7417 or later
Fixed in 10.0.17763.888010.0.19044.741710.0.19045.7417
Interim mitigation

Apply Microsoft security patches for this vulnerability to affected Windows versions; as compensating controls, limit local user privileges and monitor for anomalous DWM processes.

Recommended fix High confidence
  1. Check current Windows version by running `winver` or `systeminfo` to confirm the build number
  2. Open Settings > Windows Update or run `ms-settings:windowsupdate`
  3. Click 'Check for updates' and install all available security updates
  4. Restart the computer when prompted to complete the installation
  5. Verify the patch is installed by checking that the build number meets or exceeds: 10.0.17763.8880 (Windows 10 1809/Server 2019), 10.0.19044.7417 (Windows 10 21h2), 10.0.19045.7417 (Windows 10 22h2), 10.0.22631.7219 (Windows 11 23h2), 10.0.26100.8655 (Windows 11 24h2), 10.0.26200.8655 (Windows 11 25h2), or 10.0.28000.2269 (Windows 11 26h1)

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

Fix this in Windows 10 1809 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $2,960
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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-2026-45637 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