CVE-2026-42902: CWE-285: Improper Authorization in Microsoft Microsoft PowerToys
Improper authorization in Microsoft PowerToys allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
This vulnerability, identified as CWE-285 (Improper Authorization), exists in Microsoft PowerToys version 0.1. It allows an attacker who already has some level of authorization on the local system to escalate their privileges further. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 7.8, indicating a high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Microsoft has published an official fix to address this issue.
Potential Impact
An authorized local attacker can exploit this vulnerability to elevate their privileges, potentially gaining higher-level access than intended. This could lead to full system compromise, including unauthorized access to sensitive data and the ability to modify system configurations or software.
Mitigation Recommendations
An official fix is available from Microsoft. Users and administrators should apply the patch provided by Microsoft as detailed in the vendor advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-42902 to remediate this vulnerability.
CVE-2026-42902: CWE-285: Improper Authorization in Microsoft Microsoft PowerToys
Description
Improper authorization in Microsoft PowerToys allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
CVSS v3.1
Score 7.8high
Affected software
Weaknesses
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
This vulnerability, identified as CWE-285 (Improper Authorization), exists in Microsoft PowerToys version 0.1. It allows an attacker who already has some level of authorization on the local system to escalate their privileges further. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 7.8, indicating a high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Microsoft has published an official fix to address this issue.
Potential Impact
An authorized local attacker can exploit this vulnerability to elevate their privileges, potentially gaining higher-level access than intended. This could lead to full system compromise, including unauthorized access to sensitive data and the ability to modify system configurations or software.
Mitigation Recommendations
An official fix is available from Microsoft. Users and administrators should apply the patch provided by Microsoft as detailed in the vendor advisory at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-42902 to remediate this vulnerability.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- microsoft
- Date Reserved
- 2026-04-30T22:35:54.967Z
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Remediation Level
- official-fix
- Vendor Advisory Urls
- [{"url":"https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-42902","vendor":"Microsoft"}]
Threat ID: 6a284cc08dd33fbd856646d9
Added to database: 06/09/2026, 17:26:24 UTC
Last enriched: 07/29/2026, 21:46:52 UTC
Last updated: 07/31/2026, 21:26:44 UTC
Views: 90
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