{"id":"CVE-2022-22047","published":"2022-07-12T23:15:10Z","modified":"2026-06-17T04:27:33Z","title":"Microsoft Windows Client Server Runtime Subsystem (CSRSS) Privilege Escalation Vulnerability","vendor":"Microsoft","product":"Windows","tier":"core","eol":null,"description":{"text":"Windows Client Server Run-time Subsystem (CSRSS) Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability","provenance":"source","from":"NVD"},"summary":{"text":"The Windows Client Server Run-time Subsystem (CSRSS) in Microsoft Windows contains a privilege escalation flaw classified as an untrusted search path weakness. A local attacker with low-privileged access who does not need any user interaction can exploit it to elevate their privileges.","provenance":"ai","model":"claude-haiku-5-5","generatedAt":"2026-10-23T07:13:24Z"},"cvss":{"score":7.8,"severity":"HIGH","version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","provenance":"source","from":"NVD"},"epss":{"score":0.18765,"percentile":0.97269,"date":"2026-10-29","provenance":"source"},"kev":{"dateAdded":"2022-07-12","dueDate":"2022-08-02","ransomware":false,"requiredAction":"Apply updates per vendor instructions.","notes":"https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2022-22047;  https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-22047","provenance":"source"},"vulncheckKev":{"dateAdded":"2022-07-12","exploitedFirstSeen":"2022-07-12","ransomware":false,"evidence":[{"url":"https://api.msrc.microsoft.com/cvrf/v3.0/cvrf/2022-Jul","date":"2022-07-12"},{"url":"https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1lkNJ0uQwbeC1ZTRrxdtuPLCIl7mlUreoKfSIgajnSyY/edit","date":"2022-07-12"},{"url":"https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/feeds/known_exploited_vulnerabilities.json","date":"2022-07-12"},{"url":"https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2022/07/27/untangling-knotweed-european-private-sector-offensive-actor-using-0-day-exploits/","date":"2022-07-27"},{"url":"https://decoded.avast.io/threatresearch/avast-q3-2022-threat-report/","date":"2022-11-02"},{"url":"https://raw.githubusercontent.com/blackorbird/APT_REPORT/master/summary/2023/360_APT_Annual_Research_Report_2022.pdf","date":"2023-01-17"},{"url":"https://www.prio-n.com/a-year-in-review-2022-100-vulnerabilities-you-should-prioritize/","date":"2023-02-02"},{"url":"https://cisa.gov/news-events/cybersecurity-advisories/aa23-215a","date":"2023-08-03"},{"url":"https://storage.googleapis.com/gweb-uniblog-publish-prod/documents/Buying_Spying_-_Insights_into_Commercial_Surveillance_Vendors.pdf","date":"2024-02-06"}],"evidenceTotal":9,"provenance":"source"},"exploited":true,"otx":{"pulseCount":50,"pulses":[{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 29, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ae20c1db17e7057ae7d9ad1","created":"2026-10-28"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 28, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ae0ba7e0e2a97ff7b218819","created":"2026-10-27"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 27, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6adf68b85c3e852f3c111d18","created":"2026-10-26"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 24, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6adb740e397c3ad4799aa4cd","created":"2026-10-23"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 23, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ada236fcfba2dfa730ea482","created":"2026-10-22"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 22, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad8d33a077cbb5cab524d80","created":"2026-10-21"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 21, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad78130c4d1ac2be83a8b6d","created":"2026-10-20"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 20, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad62f63c24a405a3423cc13","created":"2026-10-19"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 19, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad4dda174e5797d0bd238b7","created":"2026-10-18"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 18, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad38c22e1848f8189d1c121","created":"2026-10-17"}],"provenance":"machine"},"cwes":[{"id":"CWE-426","name":"Untrusted Search Path"}],"references":[{"url":"https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2022-22047","tags":["Patch","Vendor Advisory"]},{"url":"https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2022-22047","tags":["Patch","Vendor Advisory"]},{"url":"https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2022-22047","tags":["US Government Resource"]}],"techniques":[{"id":"T1078","name":"Valid Accounts","tactics":["initial-access","persistence","privilege-escalation","stealth"],"provenance":"source","basis":"ctid-kev","bases":["ctid-kev"],"basisDetail":"CTID Mappings Explorer KEV 07/28/2025 (ATT&CK 16.1); capability: Privilege Escalation","mappingType":"exploitation_technique","evidence":[],"comment":"This vulnerability is exploited by an attacker who has obtained local access tothe target system. The vulnerability lies in the Client Server Run-Time Subsystem (CSRSS) on Windows, specifically in the activation context caching mechanism, due to improper handling of crafted assembly manifests. This vulnerability has been exploited by threat actors to gain elevated privileges on Windows systems. Attackers leveraged this flaw to execute arbitrary system-level commands, allowing them to manipulate system processes and deploy additional malware to perform further malicious activities.\n\nThe exploit in question is actively being used in the wild, primarily in targeted attacks. It involves creating a malicious activation context by providing a crafted assembly manifest, which is cached and used the next time the process spawns. Once the vulnerability is exploited, attackers can load a malicious DLL to achieve system-level code execution. This allows them to achieve their objectives, such as executing arbitrary code with elevated privileges, with the same permissions as the compromised system's user.","confidence":"high"},{"id":"T1068","name":"Exploitation for Privilege Escalation","tactics":["privilege-escalation"],"provenance":"source","basis":"ctid-kev","bases":["ctid-kev"],"basisDetail":"CTID Mappings Explorer KEV 07/28/2025 (ATT&CK 16.1); capability: Privilege Escalation","mappingType":"primary_impact","evidence":[],"comment":"This vulnerability is exploited by an attacker who has obtained local access tothe target system. The vulnerability lies in the Client Server Run-Time Subsystem (CSRSS) on Windows, specifically in the activation context caching mechanism, due to improper handling of crafted assembly manifests. This vulnerability has been exploited by threat actors to gain elevated privileges on Windows systems. Attackers leveraged this flaw to execute arbitrary system-level commands, allowing them to manipulate system processes and deploy additional malware to perform further malicious activities.\n\nThe exploit in question is actively being used in the wild, primarily in targeted attacks. It involves creating a malicious activation context by providing a crafted assembly manifest, which is cached and used the next time the process spawns. Once the vulnerability is exploited, attackers can load a malicious DLL to achieve system-level code execution. This allows them to achieve their objectives, such as executing arbitrary code with elevated privileges, with the same permissions as the compromised system's user.","confidence":"high"},{"id":"T1059","name":"Command and Scripting Interpreter","tactics":["execution"],"provenance":"source","basis":"ctid-kev","bases":["ctid-kev"],"basisDetail":"CTID Mappings Explorer KEV 07/28/2025 (ATT&CK 16.1); capability: Privilege Escalation","mappingType":"secondary_impact","evidence":[],"comment":"This vulnerability is exploited by an attacker who has obtained local access tothe target system. The vulnerability lies in the Client Server Run-Time Subsystem (CSRSS) on Windows, specifically in the activation context caching mechanism, due to improper handling of crafted assembly manifests. This vulnerability has been exploited by threat actors to gain elevated privileges on Windows systems. Attackers leveraged this flaw to execute arbitrary system-level commands, allowing them to manipulate system processes and deploy additional malware to perform further malicious activities.\n\nThe exploit in question is actively being used in the wild, primarily in targeted attacks. It involves creating a malicious activation context by providing a crafted assembly manifest, which is cached and used the next time the process spawns. Once the vulnerability is exploited, attackers can load a malicious DLL to achieve system-level code execution. This allows them to achieve their objectives, such as executing arbitrary code with elevated privileges, with the same permissions as the compromised system's user.","confidence":"high"},{"id":"T1547.001","name":"Registry Run Keys / Startup Folder","tactics":["persistence","privilege-escalation"],"provenance":"source","basis":"ctid-kev","bases":["ctid-kev"],"basisDetail":"CTID Mappings Explorer KEV 07/28/2025 (ATT&CK 16.1); capability: Privilege Escalation","mappingType":"secondary_impact","evidence":[],"comment":"This vulnerability is exploited by an attacker who has obtained local access tothe target system. The vulnerability lies in the Client Server Run-Time Subsystem (CSRSS) on Windows, specifically in the activation context caching mechanism, due to improper handling of crafted assembly manifests. This vulnerability has been exploited by threat actors to gain elevated privileges on Windows systems. Attackers leveraged this flaw to execute arbitrary system-level commands, allowing them to manipulate system processes and deploy additional malware to perform further malicious activities.\n\nThe exploit in question is actively being used in the wild, primarily in targeted attacks. It involves creating a malicious activation context by providing a crafted assembly manifest, which is cached and used the next time the process spawns. Once the vulnerability is exploited, attackers can load a malicious DLL to achieve system-level code execution. This allows them to achieve their objectives, such as executing arbitrary code with elevated privileges, with the same permissions as the compromised system's user.","confidence":"high"}],"reports":[],"affected":[],"advisories":[],"euvd":{"id":"EUVD-2022-27201","url":"https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/EUVD-2022-27201","exploited":true,"exploitedSince":"2022-07-12","provenance":"source"},"exploits":[],"exploitSources":null,"exploitRefs":[],"flow":[{"stage":"exploitation","techniques":["T1078"],"provenance":"source"},{"stage":"primary","techniques":["T1068"],"provenance":"source"},{"stage":"secondary","techniques":["T1059","T1547.001"],"provenance":"source"}],"timeline":[{"date":"2022-07-12","kind":"published","label":"Published (NVD)","url":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-22047","provenance":"source"},{"date":"2022-07-12","kind":"exploited-reported","label":"Exploitation first reported (VulnCheck KEV evidence)","url":"https://api.msrc.microsoft.com/cvrf/v3.0/cvrf/2022-Jul","provenance":"source"},{"date":"2022-07-12","kind":"kev","label":"Added to CISA KEV","url":"https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","provenance":"source"},{"date":"2022-07-12","kind":"euvd-exploited","label":"ENISA EUVD: exploited","url":"https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/EUVD-2022-27201","provenance":"source"}],"speed":{"daysToPublicExploit":null,"firstExploitFrom":null,"daysToKev":0},"priority":{"score":62.9,"factors":[{"name":"In a KEV catalog","points":35.0,"detail":"listed in CISA KEV and VulnCheck KEV"},{"name":"Recent KEV listing","points":0.0,"detail":"added 1570 days ago"},{"name":"Known ransomware use","points":0.0,"detail":"not known"},{"name":"EPSS percentile","points":19.45,"detail":"percentile 0.9727"},{"name":"Named in threat reports","points":0.0,"detail":"0 reports"},{"name":"Public exploit code","points":0.0,"detail":"none found"},{"name":"Mentioned in OTX pulses","points":3.0,"detail":"50 pulses"},{"name":"CVSS severity","points":5.46,"detail":"base score 7.8"},{"name":"End-of-life product","points":0.0,"detail":"supported or unknown"}]}}