CVE-2026-24302 is an elevation of privilege vulnerability identified in Microsoft Azure ARC, a service designed to extend Azure management and governance capabilities to on-premises, multi-cloud, and edge environments. The root cause is improper access control (CWE-284), which allows an unauthenticated attacker to remotely exploit the vulnerability without any user interaction. The vulnerability affects the confidentiality of the system by potentially granting unauthorized access to sensitive data or management functions, while integrity and availability remain unaffected. The CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.6 reflects the high impact due to network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N). The scope is changed (S:C), indicating that exploitation can affect resources beyond the initially vulnerable component. Currently, there are no known exploits in the wild and no patches have been published, which means organizations must rely on compensating controls. Azure ARC is widely used by enterprises to manage hybrid cloud environments, making this vulnerability particularly critical as it could allow attackers to escalate privileges and gain unauthorized control over cloud resources, potentially leading to data breaches or further lateral movement within cloud infrastructures.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2026-24302 is significant due to the widespread adoption of Azure ARC for hybrid and multi-cloud management. Unauthorized elevation of privilege could lead to exposure of sensitive corporate data, disruption of cloud governance, and potential compliance violations under GDPR and other data protection regulations. Confidentiality breaches could result in intellectual property theft or leakage of personal data. Although integrity and availability are not directly impacted, the ability to escalate privileges could enable attackers to perform further malicious actions, including deploying malware or altering configurations. The risk is heightened for sectors with critical infrastructure or sensitive data, such as finance, healthcare, and government agencies. The lack of patches increases the window of exposure, necessitating immediate mitigation efforts to protect cloud management layers and prevent unauthorized access.

1. Implement strict network segmentation and firewall rules to limit access to Azure ARC management endpoints only to trusted IP ranges and administrative networks. 2. Enforce the principle of least privilege by reviewing and tightening role-based access control (RBAC) policies within Azure ARC, ensuring users and services have only the permissions necessary for their tasks. 3. Monitor Azure ARC logs and audit trails for unusual access patterns or privilege escalations using Azure Security Center or third-party SIEM solutions. 4. Apply multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all accounts with access to Azure ARC management interfaces to add an additional layer of security. 5. Stay informed on Microsoft’s security advisories and apply patches or updates immediately once available. 6. Consider deploying compensating controls such as just-in-time (JIT) access and conditional access policies to reduce the attack surface. 7. Conduct regular security assessments and penetration tests focused on cloud management interfaces to identify and remediate potential weaknesses proactively.