CVE-2026-50487
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 · uneditedUse after free in Microsoft Windows DNS allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.
In the news
Third-party coverage- Microsoft July 2026 Patch Tuesday fixes massive 570 flaws, 3 zero-days
- Microsoft CVE Summary - Bleeping Computer
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 confidenceA use-after-free memory corruption vulnerability in Microsoft Windows DNS service allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to elevate privileges to SYSTEM level by exploiting improper memory management in the DNS service component.
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< 10.0.26100.8875< 10.0.26200.8875< 10.0.28000.2269< 10.0.28000.2525< 10.0.26100.33158CVSS 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Windows version and build numberOpen Command Prompt or PowerShell and run 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to get the exact Windows buildAffected if The build number falls below the affected version ranges (26100.8875 for 24h2, 26200.8875 for 25h2, 28000.2269/28000.2525 for 26h1, or 26100.33158 for Server 2025)
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Confirm Windows edition is affectedCheck if the system is Windows 11 24h2, 25h2, 26h1, or Windows Server 2025 using 'winver' or system informationAffected if The system is running Windows 11 24h2, 25h2, 26h1, or Windows Server 2025 and the build is below the patched versions
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Determine if DNS Server role is installedRun 'Get-WindowsFeature DNS' in PowerShell (Server) or check Services for 'DNS Server' service on client WindowsAffected if The DNS Server service is installed and running on the affected Windows version
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Verify DNS service is runningOpen Services console (services.msc) or run 'Get-Service DNS' in PowerShell to check if the DNS Server service is activeAffected if DNS Server service is installed and running on a vulnerable Windows build
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Check exact build number via registry or commandRun 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion" /v CurrentBuild' or use 'ver' command in cmd to get precise buildAffected if The numeric build portion is lower than 26100 (for 24h2/Server 2025), 26200 (for 25h2), or 28000 (for 26h1)
You are affected if running Windows 11 24h2, 25h2, 26h1, or Windows Server 2025 with a build number below the patched versions AND the DNS Server service is installed and running.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor data10.0.26100.887510.0.26100.3315810.0.26200.8875
Apply Microsoft security patches for Windows DNS immediately upon availability and restrict DNS service network exposure until patches are deployed.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-50487 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-50487 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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