CVE-2025-47982: Windows 10 1607 Privilege Escalation Flaw

CVE-2025-47982 Overview

CVE-2025-47982 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in the Windows Storage Virtual Service Provider (VSP) Driver. The flaw stems from improper input validation [CWE-20] in the driver, allowing an authorized local attacker to elevate privileges on affected systems. Microsoft published the advisory as part of its July 2025 security update cycle. The vulnerability affects a broad range of Windows client and server platforms, from Windows 10 (1607) through Windows 11 24H2 and Windows Server 2016 through Windows Server 2025. Successful exploitation grants high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the target host.

Critical Impact
An authenticated local user can escalate to SYSTEM-level privileges through crafted input to the Storage VSP Driver, enabling full control of the affected Windows host.

Affected Products

Microsoft Windows 10 (1607, 1809, 21H2, 22H2)
Microsoft Windows 11 (22H2, 23H2, 24H2)
Microsoft Windows Server 2016, 2019, 2022, 2022 23H2, and 2025

Discovery Timeline

2025-07-08 - CVE-2025-47982 published to NVD with Microsoft security update
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-47982

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the Windows Storage Virtual Service Provider (VSP) Driver, a kernel-mode component that mediates storage requests between virtualized workloads and the underlying storage stack. The driver fails to correctly validate input received from user-mode callers. An authenticated local attacker can submit crafted requests through the driver's exposed interface to trigger the improper validation condition. Because the driver executes in kernel context, a successful exploit enables the attacker to run code with SYSTEM privileges. This grants complete control over the affected host, including the ability to install programs, modify data, and create accounts with full user rights.

Root Cause

The root cause is classified as CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation). The Storage VSP Driver does not adequately verify parameters or buffer contents supplied by user-mode processes before acting on them in privileged kernel context. This validation gap creates a trust boundary violation between the user-mode caller and the kernel driver.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires local access and low-privilege authentication on the target system. No user interaction is required beyond the attacker's own actions. An attacker who has already gained a foothold, such as through phishing, credential theft, or a compromised low-privilege service, can use this vulnerability to escalate to SYSTEM. This makes the flaw a strong candidate for the post-exploitation phase of an intrusion chain. Public proof-of-concept code is not currently available, and the vulnerability is not listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. See the Microsoft Security Update for CVE-2025-47982 for vendor-supplied technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-47982

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected loading of or interaction with the Storage VSP Driver from non-standard user-mode processes.
Sudden appearance of new SYSTEM-level processes spawned from user sessions or low-privilege service contexts.
Kernel-mode crashes, bugchecks, or driver-related Event Log entries correlated with untrusted process activity.

Detection Strategies

Monitor for anomalous IOCTL or DeviceIoControl calls targeting the Storage VSP Driver from non-administrative accounts.
Correlate local logon events with subsequent privilege escalation to SYSTEM to identify suspicious escalation chains.
Apply behavioral analytics to identify processes that suddenly gain elevated tokens without a valid parent-child relationship.

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable Windows Event Log auditing for privilege use, process creation (Event ID 4688), and driver load events.
Forward endpoint telemetry to a centralized data lake for retrospective hunting once patches are applied.
Baseline legitimate Storage VSP Driver interactions in virtualization hosts and alert on deviations.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-47982

Immediate Actions Required

Apply the July 2025 Microsoft security update for all affected Windows client and server versions without delay.
Prioritize patching of virtualization hosts and multi-tenant systems where local privilege escalation carries the highest impact.
Audit local and interactive logon rights and remove unnecessary access to reduce the pool of authenticated attackers.

Patch Information

Microsoft has released security updates addressing CVE-2025-47982 across all affected Windows versions. Refer to the Microsoft Security Update Guide for CVE-2025-47982 for the specific KB articles applicable to each supported platform. Apply the update via Windows Update, WSUS, or your organization's patch management system.

Workarounds

No official vendor workaround has been published; patching is the recommended remediation path.
Restrict local logon rights through Group Policy to limit the attack surface until patches are deployed.
Enforce application allowlisting to prevent execution of unknown binaries that could carry exploit code.

bash

# Verify installed updates on a Windows host
wmic qfe list brief /format:table

# Group Policy path to restrict interactive logon:
# Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings >
#   Local Policies > User Rights Assignment > Allow log on locally