CVE-2025-50155
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability is a type confusion flaw in Windows Push Notifications that allows an authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges on a local system. It affects Windows systems with the vulnerable component enabled. Attackers must already have some level of access to the target system to exploit this vulnerability.
💻 Affected Systems
- Microsoft Windows
📦 What is this software?
Windows 10 1507 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1507 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1607 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1607 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1809 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1809 by Microsoft
Windows 10 21h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 23h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 24h2 by Microsoft
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
An authenticated attacker gains SYSTEM-level privileges, enabling complete system compromise, data theft, persistence establishment, and lateral movement capabilities.
Likely Case
An attacker with standard user privileges escalates to administrative rights, allowing installation of malware, disabling security controls, and accessing sensitive data.
If Mitigated
With proper privilege separation and application control policies, impact is limited to the compromised user context without system-wide escalation.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires authenticated access and knowledge of type confusion exploitation techniques. No public exploit available at this time.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: To be determined via Microsoft's monthly security updates
Vendor Advisory: https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2025-50155
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Apply the latest Windows security updates from Microsoft. 2. Restart the system as required. 3. Verify the update was successfully installed via Windows Update history.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Windows Push Notifications Service
windowsDisables the vulnerable component but may impact legitimate notification functionality
sc config WpnService start= disabled
sc stop WpnService
Restrict User Privileges
allImplement least privilege principles to limit impact if exploited
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application control policies to prevent unauthorized code execution
- Segment networks to limit lateral movement capabilities
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Windows version and installed updates via 'winver' and Windows Update historyCheck Version:
winverVerify Fix Applied:
Verify the specific KB update for CVE-2025-50155 is installed in Windows Update history📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual process creation from Windows Push Notifications service
- Privilege escalation attempts in security logs
- Suspicious WpnService activity
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections following local privilege escalation
SIEM Query:
EventID=4688 AND NewProcessName LIKE '%\WpnService%' AND SubjectUserName != 'SYSTEM'