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Full vulnerability report · 2017
CVE-2017-0298High confidence

Microsoft Corporation Windows COM: security vulnerability

Microsoft Corporation · Windows COM

7.3HighCVSS 3.0
Recommended action
Within 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Patch available
R
Operational reassessment

Published severity in operational context

Open reassessment dashboard →
Published severityHighOperational priority:Medium, lowered one band.downgradedsince 5 Aug 2024

Evidence used

  • No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
  • Exploitation requires an existing local or physical foothold with privileges.
  • EPSS is 1.90% for the current model date.

Compensating controls

  • Validate the affected product branch and deploy the verified fixed release.
  • Restrict local access and enforce least privilege on affected hosts.
  • Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.

Verification

  1. Confirm that the asset runs Microsoft Corporation Windows COM and falls inside the recorded affected range.
  2. Verify the installed build against the product-specific fixed version after deployment.
  3. Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
  4. Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Mitigation target: As exposure requiresRemediation target: Within 365 days

This automated reassessment organises public evidence. It does not know asset exposure, business impact or control effectiveness and does not replace CVSS or a human risk decision.

Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Choose official national sources for this report. Each advisory shows its original language. Your selection is remembered on this device and included in shared links.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2017-0654

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Patch available
01

What, why and how

A DCOM object in Helppane.exe in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, 1703, and Windows Server 2016, when configured to run as the interactive user, allows an authenticated attacker to run arbitrary code in another user's session, aka "Windows COM Session Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."

What

A DCOM object in Helppane.exe in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, 1703, and Windows Server 2016, when configured to run as the interactive user, allows an authenticated attacker to run arbitrary code in another user's session, aka "Windows COM Session Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."

Why

The current structured CVE record identifies a security weakness, but the root cause requires confirmation in the linked vendor material.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.

What

A DCOM object in Helppane.exe in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, 1703, and Windows Server 2016, when configured to run as the interactive user, allows an authenticated attacker to run arbitrary code in another user's session, aka "Windows COM Session Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."

Why

The current structured CVE record identifies a security weakness, but the root cause requires confirmation in the linked vendor material.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
local access → vulnerable operation → execute code or commands in the affected security context
Attack surface
Local
Privileges required
Low: a basic authenticated account is required
User interaction
Required interaction required
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration.
CWE not yet assigned
CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.0: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVLocalAttack vector: The attacker needs local access to the vulnerable system.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRLowPrivileges required: The attacker needs basic user-level privileges.UIRequiredUser interaction: Another user must perform an action for exploitation to succeed.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
After compromise, an attacker may use built-in shells, scripting engines, scheduled tasks and native network utilities for discovery, persistence or movement. This is a plausible LoTL path, not evidence that it has occurred for every attack.
Remote code executionPrivilege escalation
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2017-AVI-180Multiples vulnérabilités dans Microsoft Windows

.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0287 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0288 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0288 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0289 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0289 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0291 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0291 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0292 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0292 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0294 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0294 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0295 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0295 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0296 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0296 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0297 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0297 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0298 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0298 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0299 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0299 Référence CVE CVE-2017-0300 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-0300 Référence CVE CVE-2017-8460 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8460 Référence CVE CVE-2017-8462 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8462 Référence CVE CVE-2017-8464 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8464 Référence CVE CVE-2017-8465 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8465 Référence CVE CVE-2017-8466 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8466 Référence CVE CVE-2017-8468 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8468 Ré

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2017-004354複数の Microsoft Windows 製品の Helppane.exe の DCOM オブジェクトにおける別ユーザのセッションで任意のコードを実行される脆弱性

複数の Microsoft Windows 製品の Helppane.exe の DCOM オブジェクトには、対話ユーザとして構成される場合、別ユーザのセッションで任意のコードを実行される脆弱性が存在します。 ベンダは、本脆弱性を「Windows COM セッションの特権の昇格の脆弱性」として公開しています。

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Patch available
Affected
Windows COM: Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, 1703, and Windows Server 2016
Fixed
An authoritative update reference is available, but the fixed version is not recorded in the structured CVE fields. Check the linked vendor advisory for the applicable release.
Action
Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
Workaround
A mitigation or workaround reference is available from the source linked below; validate it against the affected product and version.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 15 Jun 2017 · Last source change 5 Aug 2024, 13:03 UTC · CWE not yet assigned

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceNIST NVD
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-09-01
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2017-0654
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceUnavailable
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Missing structured fields: CWE classification. Missing data is not evidence of low risk; review the primary advisory.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. ENISA EUVD mappingEUVD-2017-0654 was added to the official ENISA EUVD mapping for this CVE.
    Before
    not recorded
    After
    {"euvdId":"EUVD-2017-0654"}
    ENISA EUVD ↗
  2. Vendor guidanceAuthoritative vendor guidance changed: added patch: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2017-0298; added remediation: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2017-0298.
    Before
    no authoritative guidance recorded
    After
    patch: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2017-0298 · remediation: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2017-0298
    portal.msrc.microsoft.com ↗
  3. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, 1703, and Windows Server 2016 · Fixed: No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
    After
    Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, 1703, and Windows Server 2016 · Fixed: An authoritative update reference is available, but the fixed version is not recorded in the structured CVE fields. Check the linked vendor advisory for the applicable release.
    CNA ↗
  4. Remediation statusRemediation status changed from Awaiting fix to Patch available.
    Before
    Awaiting fix
    After
    Patch available
    portal.msrc.microsoft.com ↗
  5. SeveritySeverity changed from Unknown to High.
    Before
    Unknown
    After
    High
    NIST NVD ↗
  6. CVSS scoreCVSS score changed from not recorded to 7.3 (CVSS 3.0 · NIST NVD · CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).
    Before
    not recorded
    After
    7.3 (CVSS 3.0 · NIST NVD · CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H)
    NIST NVD ↗
  7. Catalogue recordCVE added to the BlackTree catalogue.
    CNA ↗
Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
Fixed release or patch reference recorded
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2017-0654↗CVE authority or vendor reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2017-0298 · cve.blacktree.nl