CVE-2025-47962: Windows SDK Privilege Escalation Flaw

CVE-2025-47962 Overview

CVE-2025-47962 is an improper access control vulnerability in the Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit (SDK). The flaw allows an authenticated local attacker to elevate privileges on an affected system. Microsoft published the advisory on June 10, 2025, and classified the issue under [CWE-284: Improper Access Control].

The vulnerability requires local access and low privileges but no user interaction. Successful exploitation yields high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. No public proof-of-concept exploit is available, and CISA has not added CVE-2025-47962 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

Critical Impact
An authenticated local attacker can elevate privileges to gain full control of confidentiality, integrity, and availability on systems running vulnerable Windows SDK components.

Affected Products

Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit (all versions prior to the June 2025 security update)
Development workstations with Windows SDK installed
Build servers and CI/CD systems referencing vulnerable SDK components

Discovery Timeline

2025-06-10 - CVE-2025-47962 published to the National Vulnerability Database
2025-06-10 - Microsoft releases security update guidance for CVE-2025-47962
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-47962

Vulnerability Analysis

CVE-2025-47962 stems from improper access control [CWE-284] within the Windows SDK. The affected component fails to correctly enforce permission checks on protected resources. An attacker with local access and standard user privileges can leverage this gap to perform operations reserved for higher-privileged accounts.

The Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS) reports a probability of 1.423% with a percentile of 69.663 as of July 2026. This places the vulnerability in a moderate exploitation-likelihood band despite no public exploit code being released.

Successful exploitation results in privilege elevation to a higher security context. An attacker gaining SYSTEM or administrator rights can install persistence, disable security tooling, and access protected credentials.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing or insufficient authorization enforcement on a Windows SDK component. When a low-privileged process interacts with the affected interface, the SDK does not validate whether the caller has the required rights before executing privileged operations. This class of flaw commonly appears in file, registry, or object handle operations performed by SDK helper utilities.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is local. An attacker must already possess valid credentials on the target host, such as a standard user account or access through a compromised low-privileged service. No user interaction is required, and the attack complexity is low.

Exploitation typically involves invoking the vulnerable SDK function or utility from an authenticated session. The attacker manipulates the call to trigger a privileged action that should have been blocked by access control checks. Consult the Microsoft Security Update CVE-2025-47962 advisory for component-specific technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-47962

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected process creation with elevated tokens spawned from user-context Windows SDK tools
New administrator or SYSTEM-owned files written by non-privileged accounts
Anomalous execution of SDK utilities from user-writable directories such as %TEMP% or %APPDATA%
Registry modifications under HKLM initiated by standard-user processes

Detection Strategies

Monitor Windows Event ID 4688 for process creation events tied to SDK binaries invoked by low-privileged users
Alert on token elevation events (Event ID 4672) that originate from unexpected parent processes
Correlate SDK component execution with subsequent privileged file, service, or registry changes
Baseline legitimate developer workflow patterns and flag deviations on non-developer endpoints

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable audit policies for object access and privilege use on systems with Windows SDK installed
Forward Sysmon process creation, image load, and file create events to a centralized log platform
Track integrity level transitions in child processes launched by standard user sessions
Review scheduled tasks and services created after suspected exploitation windows

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-47962

Immediate Actions Required

Apply the Microsoft security update referenced in the Microsoft Security Update CVE-2025-47962 advisory to all systems with the Windows SDK installed
Inventory build servers, developer workstations, and CI/CD hosts to identify vulnerable SDK deployments
Restrict local logon rights on systems containing the SDK to reduce the local attack surface
Review recent privileged actions on affected hosts for signs of prior exploitation

Patch Information

Microsoft has released a security update addressing CVE-2025-47962. Administrators should deploy the fix through Windows Update, Microsoft Update Catalog, or WSUS according to their patch management process. Reference the Microsoft Security Update CVE-2025-47962 advisory for the exact update packages and version numbers.

Workarounds

Remove the Windows SDK from systems where it is not required for active development
Enforce least-privilege policies to limit which accounts can execute SDK utilities
Apply application control policies such as AppLocker or Windows Defender Application Control to restrict SDK binary execution to authorized users
Isolate developer workstations on segmented network zones to contain potential post-exploitation activity

bash

# Configuration example - verify SDK version and patch status via PowerShell
Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Kits\Installed Roots"
Get-HotFix | Where-Object { $_.InstalledOn -ge (Get-Date).AddDays(-30) }