HIGH KEV Used in ransomware campaigns ⚠
Win32k.sys in the kernel-mode drivers in Microsoft Windows Server 2003 SP2, Vista SP2, and Server 2008 SP2 allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted application, as exploited in the wild in April 2015, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
Published Apr 21, 2015 ·Due Mar 24, 2022
7.8
HIGHCVSS 3.1
EPSS 55.92%
Description
Win32k.sys in the kernel-mode drivers in Microsoft Windows Server 2003 SP2, Vista SP2, and Server 2008 SP2 allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted application, as exploited in the wild in April 2015, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
Affected products
No data.
OR
- n/a
- r2
- n/a
- n/a
- n/a
No data.
No Red Hat product state for this CVE.
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
No remediation recorded yet.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
7.8 HIGH NVD
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector Local
Attack Complexity Low
Privileges Required Low
User Interaction None
Scope Unchanged
Confidentiality Impact High
Integrity Impact High
Availability Impact High
No CVSS v3.0 score for this CVE.
7.2 HIGH NVD
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Access Vector Local
Access Complexity Low
Authentication None
Confidentiality Impact Complete
Integrity Impact Complete
Availability Impact Complete
Listed in CISA KEV KEV Used in ransomware campaigns ⚠
Date Added
Mar 3, 2022
Patch Due
Mar 24, 2022
Required Action
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
CISA SSVC (Vulnrichment)
Stakeholder-Specific Vulnerability Categorization from CISA ADP.
Exploitation
ActiveAutomatable
NoTechnical Impact
TotalDecision
n/aAssessed Feb 10, 2025 · SSVC 2.0.3
55.92% 0.55923
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 1, 2026.
EPSS probability 0.55923
Score over time
2022–2026- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (22 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 55.92% (0.55923) | 99.02th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 55.92% (0.55923) | 98.92th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Nov 4, 2025 | 89.81% (0.89809) | 99.54th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 90.94% (0.90941) | 99.62th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 17, 2024 | 34.73% (0.34735) | 97.12th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Aug 12, 2024 | 37.19% (0.37185) | 97.24th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Aug 11, 2024 | 13.88% (0.13875) | 95.73th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 17, 2024 | 37.19% (0.37185) | 97.23th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 15, 2024 | 0.53% (0.00533) | 77.01th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 14, 2024 | 0.04% (0.00044) | 9.59th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 26, 2024 | 0.53% (0.00533) | 76.63th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 25, 2024 | 0.04% (0.00044) | 8.51th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Feb 8, 2024 | 0.53% (0.00533) | 76.42th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 22, 2023 | 0.53% (0.00533) | 74.02th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jun 19, 2023 | 0.63% (0.00629) | 76.05th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 21, 2023 | 3.08% (0.03082) | 89.58th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 16, 2023 | 0.92% (0.00917) | 80.55th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 15, 2023 | 0.11% (0.00115) | 43.52th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.09% (0.00090) | 36.74th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 3.61% (0.03613) | 84.99th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 3.61% (0.03613) | 83.46th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 3.61% (0.03613) | 66.62th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
Weaknesses (0)
No CWE recorded.
References (9)
- http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2020/May/34 mailing-listx_refsource_FULLDISCBroken LinkMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- http://twitter.com/symantec/statuses/590208710527549440 x_refsource_MISCPress/Media Coverage
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/74245 vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDBroken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1032155 vdb-entryx_refsource_SECTRACKBroken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2015/ms15-051 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_MSPatchVendor Advisory
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2015-1701 government-resourceUS Government Resource
- https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/37049/ exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/37367/ exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2015/04/probable_apt28_useo.html x_refsource_MISCThird Party Advisory
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2020/May/34 | mailing-listx_refsource_FULLDISCBroken LinkMailing ListThird Party Advisory | |
| http://twitter.com/symantec/statuses/590208710527549440 | x_refsource_MISCPress/Media Coverage | |
| http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/74245 | vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDBroken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1032155 | vdb-entryx_refsource_SECTRACKBroken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2015/ms15-051 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_MSPatchVendor Advisory | |
| https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2015-1701 | government-resourceUS Government Resource | |
| https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/37049/ | exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/37367/ | exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2015/04/probable_apt28_useo.html | x_refsource_MISCThird Party Advisory |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.
Sources
CVE.org / MITRE
Status PUBLISHED
Assigner microsoft
Published Apr 21, 2015
Updated Aug 14, 2026
Reserved Feb 17, 2015
Link CVE-2015-1701
CISA Vulnrichment
Updated Feb 10, 2025