CVE-2024-38071: CWE-126: Buffer Over-read in Microsoft Windows Server 2019
Windows Remote Desktop Licensing Service Denial of Service Vulnerability
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
CVE-2024-38071 is a buffer over-read vulnerability classified under CWE-126, affecting the Windows Remote Desktop Licensing Service component in Microsoft Windows Server 2019 (specifically version 10.0.17763.0). The vulnerability arises from improper bounds checking when processing certain input data, allowing an attacker to read beyond the intended buffer limits. This flaw can be triggered remotely without any authentication or user interaction by sending specially crafted network requests to the licensing service. The consequence is a denial of service (DoS) condition where the service crashes or becomes unresponsive, impacting the availability of the Remote Desktop Licensing Service. Although confidentiality and integrity are not compromised, the disruption of licensing services can prevent legitimate remote desktop connections from being authorized, potentially halting remote access capabilities. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.5, reflecting high severity due to network attack vector, no required privileges, and no user interaction. No public exploits or active exploitation in the wild have been reported yet, but the vulnerability is publicly disclosed and should be considered a significant risk. The root cause is a classic buffer over-read due to insufficient input validation, a common and well-understood class of memory safety issues. Microsoft has not yet published patches at the time of this report, but organizations should anticipate updates and prepare to deploy them promptly.
Potential Impact
For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2024-38071 is the potential denial of service of the Windows Remote Desktop Licensing Service on Windows Server 2019 systems. This can disrupt remote desktop licensing validation, causing remote desktop sessions to fail or be denied, which can severely affect business continuity, especially for organizations relying on remote administration, teleworking, or remote access to critical systems. Sectors such as finance, healthcare, government, and critical infrastructure that depend on stable remote desktop environments may face operational downtime or degraded service availability. Although no data breach or integrity compromise is expected, the unavailability of remote desktop licensing can delay incident response, patch deployment, and system management activities. Additionally, the ease of exploitation without authentication increases the risk of automated attacks targeting exposed servers. Organizations with exposed Remote Desktop Licensing Services on public networks are particularly vulnerable. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, as attackers may develop exploits following public disclosure.
Mitigation Recommendations
1. Monitor Microsoft security advisories closely and apply official patches or updates as soon as they become available to remediate the vulnerability. 2. Restrict network access to the Remote Desktop Licensing Service by implementing firewall rules or network segmentation to limit exposure only to trusted management networks or VPNs. 3. Disable or uninstall the Remote Desktop Licensing Service if it is not required in your environment to reduce attack surface. 4. Employ network intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) to detect anomalous or malformed traffic targeting the licensing service. 5. Regularly audit and inventory Windows Server 2019 deployments to identify systems running the vulnerable version (10.0.17763.0) and prioritize remediation. 6. Implement robust logging and monitoring of Remote Desktop Licensing Service events to detect potential exploitation attempts. 7. Educate IT staff on the vulnerability details and ensure incident response plans include steps for handling potential denial of service incidents related to this service.
Affected Countries
Germany, France, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Poland
CVE-2024-38071: CWE-126: Buffer Over-read in Microsoft Windows Server 2019
Description
Windows Remote Desktop Licensing Service Denial of Service Vulnerability
AI-Powered Analysis
Technical Analysis
CVE-2024-38071 is a buffer over-read vulnerability classified under CWE-126, affecting the Windows Remote Desktop Licensing Service component in Microsoft Windows Server 2019 (specifically version 10.0.17763.0). The vulnerability arises from improper bounds checking when processing certain input data, allowing an attacker to read beyond the intended buffer limits. This flaw can be triggered remotely without any authentication or user interaction by sending specially crafted network requests to the licensing service. The consequence is a denial of service (DoS) condition where the service crashes or becomes unresponsive, impacting the availability of the Remote Desktop Licensing Service. Although confidentiality and integrity are not compromised, the disruption of licensing services can prevent legitimate remote desktop connections from being authorized, potentially halting remote access capabilities. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.5, reflecting high severity due to network attack vector, no required privileges, and no user interaction. No public exploits or active exploitation in the wild have been reported yet, but the vulnerability is publicly disclosed and should be considered a significant risk. The root cause is a classic buffer over-read due to insufficient input validation, a common and well-understood class of memory safety issues. Microsoft has not yet published patches at the time of this report, but organizations should anticipate updates and prepare to deploy them promptly.
Potential Impact
For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2024-38071 is the potential denial of service of the Windows Remote Desktop Licensing Service on Windows Server 2019 systems. This can disrupt remote desktop licensing validation, causing remote desktop sessions to fail or be denied, which can severely affect business continuity, especially for organizations relying on remote administration, teleworking, or remote access to critical systems. Sectors such as finance, healthcare, government, and critical infrastructure that depend on stable remote desktop environments may face operational downtime or degraded service availability. Although no data breach or integrity compromise is expected, the unavailability of remote desktop licensing can delay incident response, patch deployment, and system management activities. Additionally, the ease of exploitation without authentication increases the risk of automated attacks targeting exposed servers. Organizations with exposed Remote Desktop Licensing Services on public networks are particularly vulnerable. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, as attackers may develop exploits following public disclosure.
Mitigation Recommendations
1. Monitor Microsoft security advisories closely and apply official patches or updates as soon as they become available to remediate the vulnerability. 2. Restrict network access to the Remote Desktop Licensing Service by implementing firewall rules or network segmentation to limit exposure only to trusted management networks or VPNs. 3. Disable or uninstall the Remote Desktop Licensing Service if it is not required in your environment to reduce attack surface. 4. Employ network intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) to detect anomalous or malformed traffic targeting the licensing service. 5. Regularly audit and inventory Windows Server 2019 deployments to identify systems running the vulnerable version (10.0.17763.0) and prioritize remediation. 6. Implement robust logging and monitoring of Remote Desktop Licensing Service events to detect potential exploitation attempts. 7. Educate IT staff on the vulnerability details and ensure incident response plans include steps for handling potential denial of service incidents related to this service.
Affected Countries
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Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.1
- Assigner Short Name
- microsoft
- Date Reserved
- 2024-06-11T22:36:08.181Z
- Cisa Enriched
- true
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
Threat ID: 682d981ec4522896dcbdb8fb
Added to database: 5/21/2025, 9:08:46 AM
Last enriched: 10/14/2025, 11:28:42 PM
Last updated: 10/16/2025, 3:34:38 AM
Views: 25
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