CVE-2022-21919
Windows User Profile Service Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
- Severity
- 7.0 / 10
- High · CVSS 3.1
- Exploit chance (EPSS)
- 2.43%
- Chance of exploitation in the next 30 days. Higher than 84.27% of scored vulnerabilities.
- Known exploited
- Yes
- In CISA's catalog since Apr 25, 2022
- Weakness
- CWE-59 Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
- CWE-59 Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
- Fix
- None yet
- No fixed version published
Description
Windows User Profile Service Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
How to fix
No fixed version has been published yet. Until one is, remove or replace the package, or turn off or isolate the affected feature. This page updates when a fix ships.
Severity breakdown
CVSS 3.1 7.0
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- High
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
Weakness
CWE-59: Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.
How to prevent it
- Architecture and Design: Follow the principle of least privilege when assigning access rights to entities in a software system. Denying access to a file can prevent an attacker from replacing that file with a link to a sensitive file. Ensure good compartmentalization in the system to provide protected areas that can be trusted.
CWE-59: Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.
How to prevent it
- Architecture and Design: Follow the principle of least privilege when assigning access rights to entities in a software system. Denying access to a file can prevent an attacker from replacing that file with a link to a sensitive file. Ensure good compartmentalization in the system to provide protected areas that can be trusted.
References
Advisories
Other links
Timeline
- Published
- Added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog
- Remediation due for U.S. federal agencies
- Last updated by the source
- Latest EPSS score
Related advisories
| Advisory | Severity | Why it's related |
|---|---|---|
| GHSA-hjqx-j4rw-g7xv zip: Arbitrary file write outside the extraction directory, because ZipArchive::extract validates symlink targets lexically. | High | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-4vjg-vx72-qq4g systeminformation has path traversal in Linux networkStats() that allows symlink-based file disclosure outside /sys/class/net | Low | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-9j6q-wvj5-jgjg filelock: Symlink swap during SoftFileLock's writability check leaks whether a path exists and is writable by the lock taker | Low | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-j8f7-rjxc-mr56 filelock: ReadWriteLock follows a symlink at the lock path into SQLite | Medium | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-crv4-6mhj-j5jh filelock: SoftFileLock stale-break restore follows a swapped-in symbolic link and hard-links a file of the user running the lock into the lock directory | Medium | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-v4x8-3wr5-3wq8 filelock ReadWriteLock: SQLite reopens the lock database by name, so a planted symlink or journal file makes the lock user's process overwrite or unlink its own files | High | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-gq48-pqfc-9p58 GitPython: Submodule.move() follows an attacker-committed intermediate symlink outside the worktree | Medium | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
| GHSA-2j93-m82w-73j2 Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-96231 - .NET and Visual Studio Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability | High | Same weakness, CWE-59 |
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