CVE-2018-8453

CRITICALNVD 7.89.0▲
EchelonGraph scoreHIGH confidence

Score elevated to 9.0 because this CVE is listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-01-21), indicating real-world exploitation has been confirmed by US federal agencies. NVD baseline CVSS 7.8 retained for reference. Confidence: HIGH.

Triggered by: CISA KEV (actively exploited)
Sources: cisa_kev, epss, ghsa, nvd
Trending — 5 sources updated this weekExploited in the wild
9.0EG
EchelonGraph verdictPatch nowTreat as an emergency — this is being exploited.
  • Actively exploited in the wild (CISA-KEV)
CISA-KEV: ExploitedEPSS PROB: 70%CVSS: 7.8Exploit: cisa kev · ssvc active · kev ransomware · Metasploit · Exploit-DB (verified) · epss top5pct · epss high · public exploitExposed: 0

No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows when the Win32k component fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2012, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 10, Windows 10 Servers.

CVSS v3
7.8
EG Score
9.0(high)
EG Risk
81(Attend)
EG Risk 81/100SSVC: Attend

EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).

How it’s computed
Severity90% × 45%
Exploitation100% × 40%
Automatability0% × 15%
Action: Remediate soon — notable exploitation risk.
EPSS PROB
70%
EPSS %ILE
99%
KEV
⚠ Exploited

Published

October 10, 2018

Last Modified

October 28, 2025

Advisory Details (5)

Auto-updated Jun 3, 2026
🔬 Proof of concept available. Patch available. Sources: microsoft.
generic🟡 PoC Available

Zero-day exploit (CVE-2018-8453) used in targeted attacks | Securelist

https://securelist.com/cve-2018-8453-used-in-targeted-attack
microsoft Patch Available

Security Update Guide - Microsoft Security Response Center

Security Update Guide - Microsoft Security Response Center. Patch available via Microsoft Security Update

https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8453
generic
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1041828
generic
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/105467
generic

Packet Storm

http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/153669/Microsoft-Windows-NtUserSetWindowFNID-Win32k-User-Callback.html

Weakness Classification(1)

MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.

All Vendor Advisories

(1)

Every vendor that published an advisory referencing this CVE — pulled from our cve_vendor_advisories aggregation. Click any row for the vendor's original advisory page.

Data Freshness Timeline

(refreshed 62× in last 7d / 362× in last 30d)

Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.

Showing the most recent 100 of 730 total refreshes for this CVE.

  1. 2026-07-27 14:55 UTCVendor advisory
  2. 2026-07-27 14:55 UTCGHSA enrichment
  3. 2026-07-27 10:15 UTCVendor advisory
  4. 2026-07-27 10:15 UTCGHSA enrichment
  5. 2026-07-27 06:18 UTCVendor advisory
  6. 2026-07-27 06:17 UTCGHSA enrichment
  7. 2026-07-27 02:19 UTCVendor advisory
  8. 2026-07-27 02:19 UTCGHSA enrichment
  9. 2026-07-26 22:21 UTCVendor advisory
  10. 2026-07-26 22:21 UTCGHSA enrichment
  11. 2026-07-26 18:22 UTCEG score recompute
  12. 2026-07-26 18:22 UTCVendor advisory
  13. 2026-07-26 18:22 UTCGHSA enrichment
  14. 2026-07-26 14:51 UTCEPSS rescore
  15. 2026-07-26 14:22 UTCEG score recompute
  16. 2026-07-26 14:22 UTCVendor advisory
  17. 2026-07-26 14:22 UTCGHSA enrichment
  18. 2026-07-26 10:24 UTCVendor advisory
  19. 2026-07-26 10:24 UTCGHSA enrichment
  20. 2026-07-26 06:24 UTCVendor advisory
  21. 2026-07-26 06:23 UTCGHSA enrichment
  22. 2026-07-26 02:26 UTCEG score recompute
  23. 2026-07-26 02:26 UTCVendor advisory
  24. 2026-07-26 02:25 UTCGHSA enrichment
  25. 2026-07-24 14:14 UTCEPSS rescore
Show 75 more
  1. 2026-07-24 14:14 UTCEPSS rescore
  2. 2026-07-23 01:37 UTCEG score recompute
  3. 2026-07-22 22:17 UTCEG score recompute
  4. 2026-07-22 20:29 UTCGHSA enrichment
  5. 2026-07-22 19:40 UTCCISA KEV update
  6. 2026-07-22 16:32 UTCEG score recompute
  7. 2026-07-22 16:32 UTCVendor advisory
  8. 2026-07-22 16:31 UTCGHSA enrichment
  9. 2026-07-22 14:05 UTCEPSS rescore
  10. 2026-07-22 12:34 UTCVendor advisory
  11. 2026-07-22 12:33 UTCGHSA enrichment
  12. 2026-07-22 08:35 UTCVendor advisory
  13. 2026-07-22 08:35 UTCGHSA enrichment
  14. 2026-07-22 04:38 UTCVendor advisory
  15. 2026-07-22 04:38 UTCGHSA enrichment
  16. 2026-07-22 00:38 UTCVendor advisory
  17. 2026-07-22 00:38 UTCGHSA enrichment
  18. 2026-07-21 18:41 UTCEG score recompute
  19. 2026-07-21 18:41 UTCVendor advisory
  20. 2026-07-21 18:41 UTCGHSA enrichment
  21. 2026-07-21 15:22 UTCEPSS rescore
  22. 2026-07-21 14:43 UTCVendor advisory
  23. 2026-07-21 14:43 UTCGHSA enrichment
  24. 2026-07-21 14:37 UTCCISA KEV update
  25. 2026-07-21 10:46 UTCVendor advisory
  26. 2026-07-21 10:45 UTCGHSA enrichment
  27. 2026-07-21 06:45 UTCVendor advisory
  28. 2026-07-21 06:45 UTCGHSA enrichment
  29. 2026-07-21 02:47 UTCVendor advisory
  30. 2026-07-21 02:46 UTCGHSA enrichment
  31. 2026-07-20 22:47 UTCVendor advisory
  32. 2026-07-20 22:47 UTCGHSA enrichment
  33. 2026-07-20 18:50 UTCEG score recompute
  34. 2026-07-20 18:50 UTCVendor advisory
  35. 2026-07-20 18:50 UTCGHSA enrichment
  36. 2026-07-20 17:04 UTCEPSS rescore
  37. 2026-07-20 17:04 UTCEPSS rescore
  38. 2026-07-20 14:52 UTCVendor advisory
  39. 2026-07-20 14:52 UTCGHSA enrichment
  40. 2026-07-20 10:48 UTCGHSA enrichment
  41. 2026-07-20 06:50 UTCVendor advisory
  42. 2026-07-20 06:50 UTCGHSA enrichment
  43. 2026-07-20 02:20 UTCVendor advisory
  44. 2026-07-20 02:20 UTCGHSA enrichment
  45. 2026-07-19 22:22 UTCVendor advisory
  46. 2026-07-19 22:21 UTCGHSA enrichment
  47. 2026-07-19 18:23 UTCVendor advisory
  48. 2026-07-19 18:23 UTCGHSA enrichment
  49. 2026-07-19 14:26 UTCVendor advisory
  50. 2026-07-19 14:26 UTCGHSA enrichment
  51. 2026-07-19 10:29 UTCVendor advisory
  52. 2026-07-19 10:29 UTCGHSA enrichment
  53. 2026-07-19 06:31 UTCVendor advisory
  54. 2026-07-19 06:31 UTCGHSA enrichment
  55. 2026-07-19 02:33 UTCEG score recompute
  56. 2026-07-19 02:33 UTCVendor advisory
  57. 2026-07-19 02:33 UTCGHSA enrichment
  58. 2026-07-19 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
  59. 2026-07-19 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
  60. 2026-07-18 22:35 UTCVendor advisory
  61. 2026-07-18 22:35 UTCGHSA enrichment
  62. 2026-07-18 18:37 UTCVendor advisory
  63. 2026-07-18 18:37 UTCGHSA enrichment
  64. 2026-07-18 14:38 UTCVendor advisory
  65. 2026-07-18 14:38 UTCGHSA enrichment
  66. 2026-07-18 10:40 UTCVendor advisory
  67. 2026-07-18 10:40 UTCGHSA enrichment
  68. 2026-07-18 06:42 UTCVendor advisory
  69. 2026-07-18 06:42 UTCGHSA enrichment
  70. 2026-07-18 02:44 UTCVendor advisory
  71. 2026-07-18 02:44 UTCGHSA enrichment
  72. 2026-07-17 22:46 UTCVendor advisory
  73. 2026-07-17 22:46 UTCGHSA enrichment
  74. 2026-07-17 18:48 UTCVendor advisory
  75. 2026-07-17 18:48 UTCGHSA enrichment

Publicly available exploits

(5 references)

Working exploit code is in the public domain (1 Metasploit module) (3 GitHub PoCs) (1 Exploit-DB entry). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.

  • Exploit-DBEDB-47134✓ verified
    First seen Jul 17, 2019

    Microsoft Windows - NtUserSetWindowFNID Win32k User Callback Privilege Escalation (Metasploit)

    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCthepwnrip/leHACK-Analysis-of-CVE-2018-8453
    First seen Jul 8, 2019
    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCze0r/cve-2018-8453-exp
    First seen Jan 18, 2019

    cve-2018-8453 exp

    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCMkv4/cve-2018-8453-exp
    First seen Jan 18, 2019

    cve-2018-8453 exp

    Open source ↗
  • Metasploitexploit/windows/local/cve_2018_8453_win32k_priv_esc✓ verified
    First seen Oct 9, 2018

    Windows NtUserSetWindowFNID Win32k User Callback

    Open source ↗

Frequently asked(6)

What is CVE-2018-8453?
CVE-2018-8453 is a critical vulnerability published on October 10, 2018. An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows when the Win32k component fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server…
When was CVE-2018-8453 disclosed?
CVE-2018-8453 was first published in the National Vulnerability Database on October 10, 2018, with the most recent update on October 28, 2025. EchelonGraph re-ingests CVE updates from NVD on a 2-hour cycle, so this page reflects the latest published state.
Is CVE-2018-8453 actively exploited?
Yes. CISA added CVE-2018-8453 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on January 21, 2022, affecting Microsoft Win32k. KEV listing indicates confirmed exploitation in the wild; this CVE warrants immediate patching attention.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-8453?
CVE-2018-8453 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.8 (NVD). EchelonGraph synthesises NVD + CISA KEV + FIRST EPSS + GHSA into a combined EG score of 9.0.
Which products are affected by CVE-2018-8453?
CVE-2018-8453 affects Microsoft Win32k. The full affected-products list, including version ranges and fixed versions, is shown in the Affected Packages section of this page.
How do I remediate CVE-2018-8453?
Patch to the fixed version published by the affected vendor. Where vendor advisories exist for CVE-2018-8453, EchelonGraph cross-links them in the Vendor Advisories panel below — those typically contain the canonical remediation steps, fixed version numbers, and any vendor-specific mitigations.

Dependency Blast Radius

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