CVE-2024-38072 is a vulnerability identified in Microsoft Windows Server 2019, specifically affecting the Remote Desktop Licensing Service. The root cause is a NULL pointer dereference (CWE-476), which occurs when the service attempts to access or dereference a pointer that has not been initialized or has been set to NULL. This flaw can be triggered remotely by an unauthenticated attacker sending specially crafted network packets to the vulnerable service. Exploiting this vulnerability causes the Remote Desktop Licensing Service to crash, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. The affected version is Windows Server 2019 build 10.0.17763.0. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity but severely affects availability by disrupting licensing services critical for Remote Desktop functionality. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.5, indicating high severity, with attack vector as network (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N). The scope remains unchanged (S:U), and the impact is limited to availability (A:H). No public exploits have been reported yet, but the vulnerability is publicly disclosed and should be addressed promptly. Since the Remote Desktop Licensing Service is essential for managing client access licenses, its disruption can prevent legitimate remote connections, impacting business continuity and remote administration capabilities.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2024-38072 is the potential disruption of Remote Desktop Services due to licensing service crashes. This can lead to denial of service conditions where remote users cannot authenticate or maintain sessions, affecting IT operations, remote workforce productivity, and access to critical systems. Organizations relying heavily on Windows Server 2019 for remote access, especially in sectors like finance, healthcare, government, and critical infrastructure, may experience operational downtime. The lack of confidentiality or integrity impact reduces risks of data breaches but does not mitigate the operational risks posed by service unavailability. Additionally, the vulnerability’s exploitation requires no authentication or user interaction, increasing the risk of automated attacks or scanning by threat actors. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently lowers immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially as attackers may develop exploits following public disclosure. European entities with remote desktop environments exposed to untrusted networks or insufficiently segmented internal networks are particularly vulnerable.

1. Monitor Microsoft security advisories closely and apply official patches or updates as soon as they become available to remediate the vulnerability. 2. Until patches are released, implement network-level controls such as firewall rules to restrict access to Remote Desktop Licensing Service ports (typically TCP 135, 3389, and related licensing ports) to trusted hosts only. 3. Employ network segmentation to isolate Remote Desktop Services from untrusted networks and limit exposure. 4. Use VPNs or other secure remote access technologies to reduce direct exposure of Remote Desktop Services to the internet. 5. Enable and monitor logging for Remote Desktop Licensing Service crashes or unusual activity to detect potential exploitation attempts early. 6. Conduct regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing focused on remote desktop infrastructure to identify and remediate weaknesses. 7. Educate IT staff on the importance of timely patching and monitoring of remote access services. 8. Consider deploying intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) with signatures or heuristics for anomalous Remote Desktop Licensing Service traffic once available. These targeted measures go beyond generic advice by focusing on protecting the specific vulnerable service and minimizing attack surface exposure.