dbcve.org
Windows 10 1607Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2026-50296

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-07-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0.14393.9339 / 10.0.17763.9020 or later.
See remediation →
72/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click 5 weeks old

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 Graphics Kernel allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

In the news

Third-party coverage
Trending covered by 1 outlet this week · latest 1mo 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

This is a use-after-free (UAF) memory corruption vulnerability in a Graphics Kernel component. The flaw allows a locally authenticated, authorized attacker to exploit a dangling pointer after memory has been freed, potentially achieving arbitrary code execution with elevated (kernel-level) privileges.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches for the Graphics Kernel component when available; in the interim, minimize local attack surface by restricting console access and monitoring for suspicious graphics driver activity.

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:< 10.0.14393.9339
Windows 10 1809Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.17763.9020
Windows 10 21h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19044.7548
Windows 10 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19045.7548
Windows 11 24h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.26100.8875
Windows 11 25h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.26200.8875
Windows 11 26h1Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.28000.2525
Windows Server 2016Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.14393.9339

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
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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. Determine Windows version
    Run 'winver' from the command prompt or check HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion in the registry for the CurrentBuild and CurrentBuildNumber values
    Affected if The installed version falls within the affected ranges: Windows 10 1607/1809/21h2/22h2, Windows 11 24h2/25h2/26h1, or Windows Server 2016 with build numbers lower than the thresholds listed in the CVE
  2. Confirm Graphics Kernel component presence
    The Graphics Kernel (win32k.sys) is a core Windows kernel component. Verify its existence by checking %systemroot%\System32\win32k.sys
    Affected if The file exists (which it will on any standard Windows installation with graphics capabilities)
  3. Check for graphics driver loaded in kernel memory
    Run 'tasklist /m win32k.sys' or use Process Explorer to verify win32k.sys is loaded into memory
    Affected if The graphics subsystem is active (this is the default state for any Windows system with a display)
  4. Review event logs for graphics-related errors
    Open Event Viewer and check Application/System logs for entries with source 'Graphics' or related to win32k.sys, particularly memory access violations or faulting module errors
    Affected if Repeated win32k.sys-related crash events or access violation errors are logged

A system is affected if it runs an unpatched Windows version within the affected ranges listed for this CVE and the Graphics Kernel component is present and active.

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 10.0.14393.9339 / 10.0.17763.9020 / 10.0.19044.7548 or later
Fixed in 10.0.14393.933910.0.17763.902010.0.19044.7548
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches for the Graphics Kernel component when available; in the interim, minimize local attack surface by restricting console access and monitoring for suspicious graphics driver activity.

Recommended fix High confidence

Windows 10 1607: 10.0.14393.9339 or later | Windows 10 1809: 10.0.17763.9020 or later | Windows 10 21h2: 10.0.19044.7548 or later | Windows 10 22h2: 10.0.19045.7548 or later | Windows 11 24h2: 10.0.26100.8875 or later | Windows 11 25h2: 10.0.26200.8875 or later | Windows 11 26h1: 10.0.28000.2525 or

  1. Open Windows Settings on the affected system
  2. Navigate to Update & Security > Windows Update
  3. Click 'Check for updates' to download and install the latest cumulative update
  4. Restart the system after the update completes
  5. Verify the installed OS build number matches or exceeds the fixed version for your Windows release
Caveat Standard Windows update risks: update may require restart, ensure backups exist for production systems

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

Fix this in Windows 10 1607 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
21.0 hours of engineering $3,680
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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-2026-50296 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