CVE-2010-4398
CVE-2010-4398 is a security flaw in Microsoft Windows, Microsoft’s operating system for PCs and servers. Someone who already has a way in can corrupt memory in Microsoft Windows to take more control. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks on 28 Mar 2022.[1]
Microsoft Windows is in things households have, such as phones, computers, browsers and everyday apps, so the fix matters at home as much as at work. Microsoft has published a fix or advice.
Description
CISA calls it a kernel stack-based buffer overflow in Microsoft Windows. In its words: “Stack-based buffer overflow in the RtlQueryRegistryValues function in win32k.sys in Microsoft Windows allows local users to gain privileges, and bypass the User Account Control (UAC) feature.”[1]
The CVE record adds: “Stack-based buffer overflow in the RtlQueryRegistryValues function in win32k.sys in Microsoft Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista SP1 and SP2, Windows Server 2008 Gold, SP2, and R2, and Windows 7 allows local users to gain privileges, and bypass the User Account Control (UAC) feature, via a crafted REG_BINARY value for a SystemDefaultEUDCFont registry key, aka "Driver Improper Interaction with Windows Kernel Vulnerability."”[2]
The underlying weakness is memory buffer error (CWE-119), in MITRE’s list of common software weaknesses.
It scores 7.8 out of 10 on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, which rates it high, scored by NVD using CVSS 3.1.[2]
Affected versions
NVD’s record doesn’t list version ranges for it; Microsoft’s advisory has them[3]. CISA names the product as Microsoft Windows.
Every device with Microsoft Windows needs the update.
Exploitation
CISA added it to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities on 28 Mar 2022, 4,130 days after it was made public. CISA lists a flaw only when it has reliable evidence of it being exploited, and gave US federal agencies until 21 Apr 2022 to fix it.[1]
FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System, which estimates how likely a flaw is to be used in attacks in the next 30 days from what it sees across the internet, puts it at 9%. That’s in the top 5% of the flaws it scores.[4]
CISA assesses it as not automatable: each attack takes some work.
CISA doesn’t say who was attacked, or how.
Fix
Microsoft has published a fix or advice.[3] CISA’s required action: “Apply updates per vendor instructions.”[1]
- Update Microsoft Windows now.On Windows: Settings, Windows Update, Check for updates, then restart. Office updates come the same way, or from any Office app: File, Account, Update Options. Then turn on automatic updates, so the next fix arrives on its own.
- If there’s no update, stop using it.CISA’s advice when a flaw being used in attacks has no fix is to stop using the product until it does.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| The flaw is made public in the National Vulnerability Database, with a severity score of 7.8.[2] | |
| CISA adds it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks.[1] | |
| CISA’s deadline for US government agencies to fix it.[1] | |
| FIRST puts the odds of it being used in attacks in the next 30 days at 9%.[4] |
See also
Other Microsoft Windows flaws
- CVE-2026-96951: command injection ·
- CVE-2026-85880: heap-based buffer overflow ·
- CVE-2026-81963: link following ·
- CVE-2008-4250: buffer overflow ·
- CVE-2026-32202: protection mechanism failure ·
- CVE-2025-60710: link following ·
Other memory buffer error flaws
- CVE-2026-88779, Citrix NetScaler: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2026-88772, Citrix NetScaler: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2026-88771, Citrix NetScaler: improper input validation ·
- CVE-2026-8452, Citrix NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2009-3459, Adobe Acrobat and Reader: heap-based buffer overflow ·
Added the same day
- CVE-2022-1096, Chrome and other Chromium browsers: type confusion ·
- CVE-2022-0543, Redis Debian-specific Redis Servers: debian-specific redis server lua sandbox escape ·
- CVE-2021-38646, Microsoft Office: access connectivity engine remote code execution ·
- CVE-2021-34486, Microsoft Windows: event tracing privilege escalation ·
- CVE-2021-26085, Atlassian Confluence Server: pre-authorization arbitrary file read ·
Every Microsoft flaw on CISA’s list · Everything added in March 2022
References
- ^ Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. “Microsoft Windows Kernel Stack-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability”. Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, added 28 Mar 2022.
- ^ National Institute of Standards and Technology. “CVE-2010-4398 Detail”. National Vulnerability Database, published 6 Dec 2010.
- ^ Microsoft. Advisories and fixes: docs.microsoft.com.
- ^ FIRST. “Exploit Prediction Scoring System”. EPSS 0.087, percentile 95.1, 31 Oct 2026.
- CVE Program. “CVE-2010-4398”. The official CVE record.
This article is built from CISA’s catalog (version 2026.10.30), NVD’s record and FIRST’s scores, kept in HARD’s database and checked every morning. The plain English is HARD’s.