Microsoft‘s August 2024 security patch addressed several vulnerabilities, including CVE-2024-38106, a critical flaw in the Windows kernel. The vulnerability, which has a CVSS score of 7.0, is a race condition that can allow a local attacker to escalate privileges to SYSTEM. Reported by an anonymous researcher, the issue gained urgency after a proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit was released on GitHub, making it more likely to be used in the wild.
CVE-2024-38106 arises from improper locking in the kernel’s function calls, leading to a use-after-free condition. This flaw allows attackers to corrupt kernel memory and execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. Microsoft’s patch implements improved locking mechanisms to address the vulnerability, but the public availability of the exploit raises the risk of attacks significantly. Organizations are strongly encouraged to apply the updates immediately.
Windows 11, Windows Server 2022, and some older supported versions of Windows are affected by the flaw. While there have been no widespread reports of exploitation yet, the existence of a public PoC increases the chances of attacks on unpatched systems. The vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges, making it a serious threat to system integrity.
In addition to CVE-2024-38106, Microsoft also patched other critical vulnerabilities in the same release, including a zero-click remote code execution (RCE) flaw in the Windows TCP/IP stack. Security teams are urged to prioritize these updates to protect against both privilege escalation and RCE threats.
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