CVE-2024-26172: 
vulnerability analysis and mitigation

Windows DWM Core Library Information Disclosure Vulnerability (CVE-2024-26172) is a security flaw affecting various versions of Microsoft Windows operating systems. The vulnerability was first disclosed on April 9, 2024, and received its latest update on January 8, 2025. The affected systems include Windows 10 (versions 1809, 21H2, 22H2), Windows 11 (versions 21H2, 22H2, 23H2), and Windows Server (2019, 2022, 2022 23H2) (NVD).

The vulnerability is classified as an Out-of-bounds Read (CWE-125) with a CVSS v3.1 Base Score of 5.5 (Medium). The attack vector is Local (AV:L), with Low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring Low privileges (PR:L), and No user interaction (UI:N). The scope is Unchanged (S:U), with No impact on confidentiality (C:N) and integrity (I:N), but High impact on availability (A:H) (NVD).

The vulnerability primarily affects system availability, with a High impact rating for this aspect. While there are no direct impacts on system confidentiality or integrity, the information disclosure nature of the vulnerability could potentially expose sensitive system information (NVD).

The vulnerability requires local access and low privileges for exploitation. The attack complexity is rated as low, indicating that the vulnerability is relatively straightforward to exploit once the attacker has the necessary local access (NVD).

Microsoft has released security updates to address this vulnerability across all affected versions. The fixes are available through various KB updates including KB5036896 (Windows 10 1809 and Server 2019), KB5036892 (Windows 10 21H2/22H2), KB5036894 (Windows 11 21H2), KB5036893 (Windows 11 22H2/23H2), and KB5036909/KB5036910 (Windows Server 2022) (Rapid7).