CVE-2025-21296: 
vulnerability analysis and mitigation

BranchCache Remote Code Execution Vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-21296, was discovered and reported by Microsoft Corporation. The vulnerability was initially disclosed on January 14, 2025, and affects multiple versions of Microsoft Windows operating systems, including Windows 10, Windows 11, and various Windows Server editions (NVD Database).

The vulnerability has been assigned a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with the following vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Microsoft has classified this as a Use After Free (CWE-416) vulnerability. The technical assessment indicates that it requires adjacent network access but no privileges or user interaction for exploitation (NVD Database).

This vulnerability poses significant security risks as it allows for remote code execution through BranchCache, potentially enabling attackers to achieve high levels of confidentiality breach, integrity compromise, and availability disruption on affected systems (NVD Database).

Microsoft has released security updates to address this vulnerability. The patches are available for affected systems including Windows 10 (versions 1507 through 22H2), Windows 11 (versions 22H2 through 24H2), and Windows Server versions from 2008 R2 SP1 to 2025 (NVD Database).