CVE-2026-24295
📋 TL;DR
A race condition vulnerability in Windows Device Association Service allows authenticated attackers to escalate privileges locally. This affects Windows systems where an attacker already has some level of access and can execute code. The vulnerability enables elevation from a lower privilege level to higher system privileges.
💻 Affected Systems
- Windows Device Association Service
📦 What is this software?
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 21h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 21h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 23h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 23h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 24h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 24h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 25h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 25h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 26h1 by Microsoft
Windows 11 26h1 by Microsoft
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with SYSTEM-level privileges, enabling installation of persistent malware, credential theft, and lateral movement across the network.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation allowing attackers to bypass security controls, install additional malware, and access sensitive system resources.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper privilege separation and minimal user rights, though local code execution could still lead to data access.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires authenticated access and ability to execute code; race conditions can be challenging to exploit reliably.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check Microsoft Security Update Guide for specific KB numbers
Vendor Advisory: https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-24295
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Apply latest Windows security updates from Microsoft Update. 2. Restart affected systems. 3. Verify patch installation via Windows Update history.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Windows Device Association Service
windowsDisable the vulnerable service if not required for business operations
sc config DeviceAssociationService start= disabled
sc stop DeviceAssociationService
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict least privilege principles to limit user rights
- Monitor for suspicious process creation and privilege escalation attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Windows Update history for missing security patches related to CVE-2026-24295Check Version:
systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"Verify Fix Applied:
Verify KB patch is installed via 'wmic qfe list' or Windows Update history📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual service process creation
- Privilege escalation events in Windows Security logs
- Multiple rapid DeviceAssociationService calls
Network Indicators:
- Not applicable - local exploitation only
SIEM Query:
EventID=4688 AND NewProcessName="*DeviceAssociationService*" AND SubjectUserName NOT IN ("SYSTEM", "LOCAL SERVICE", "NETWORK SERVICE")