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Full vulnerability report · 2018
CVE-2018-8514High confidence

Microsoft Windows 7: Improper Initialization

Microsoft · Windows 7

5.5MediumCVSS 3.0
Recommended action
Scheduled

Medium technical severity with no CISA KEV confirmation; remediate through the normal risk-based patch cycle unless local exposure raises the priority.

Patch available
R
Operational reassessment

Published severity in operational context

Open reassessment dashboard →
Published severityMediumOperational priority:Low, 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 1.89% 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 Windows 7 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: No default targetRemediation target: Normal maintenance

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-2018-20138

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 actionScheduled

Medium technical severity with no CISA KEV confirmation; remediate through the normal risk-based patch cycle unless local exposure raises the priority.

Patch available
01

What, why and how

An information disclosure vulnerability exists when Remote Procedure Call runtime improperly initializes objects in memory, aka "Remote Procedure Call runtime Information Disclosure 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.

What

An information disclosure vulnerability exists when Remote Procedure Call runtime improperly initializes objects in memory, aka "Remote Procedure Call runtime Information Disclosure 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.

Why

The product does not initialize or incorrectly initializes a resource, which might leave the resource in an unexpected state when it is accessed or used.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may obtain information outside the intended access boundary.

What

An information disclosure vulnerability exists when Remote Procedure Call runtime improperly initializes objects in memory, aka "Remote Procedure Call runtime Information Disclosure 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.

Why

The product does not initialize or incorrectly initializes a resource, which might leave the resource in an unexpected state when it is accessed or used.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may obtain information outside the intended access boundary.

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 → Improper Initialization → obtain information outside the intended access boundary
Attack surface
Local
Privileges required
Low: a basic authenticated account is required
User interaction
None
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: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-665 ↗

CWE-665: Improper Initialization. The product does not initialize or incorrectly initializes a resource, which might leave the resource in an unexpected state when it is accessed or used.

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:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.INoneIntegrity impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.ANoneAvailability impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
The issue can support a local privilege or sandbox boundary transition; normal system utilities may then be available in the gained context.
CWE-665
A

Official authority intelligence

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

CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2018-AVI-596Multiples vulnérabilités dans Microsoft Windows

De multiples vulnérabilités ont été corrigées dans Microsoft Windows . Elles permettent à un attaquant de provoquer une atteinte à la confidentialité des données, une élévation de privilèges, un déni de service et une exécution de code à distance.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2018-011943複数の Microsoft Windows 製品における情報を公開される脆弱性

複数の Microsoft Windows 製品には、カーネルリモートプロシージャコールプロバイダドライバがメモリ内のオブジェクトを不適切に初期化する場合、情報を公開される脆弱性が存在します。 ベンダは、本脆弱性を「リモート プロシージャ コール ランタイムの情報漏えいの脆弱性」として公開しています。

Official advisory ↗
KISA KrCERT/CC · Korean · KNVD-4970최근 침해사고에 악용된 보안 취약점 주의 권고

#### 최근 침해사고에 악용된 보안 취약점 주의 권고 2019.01.10 ##### □ 개요 o 최근 침해사고에 악용된 보안 취약점이 공개되어 해결방안에 따라 적극적인 보안 조치 당부 ##### □ 취약점 설명 o 윈도우 커널 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 등(16개), IBM Tivoli 모니터링 포탈 제품 취약점(1개) CVE 번호 취약점 내용 패치 일시 참고 사이트 CVE-2018-8477 Windows 커널 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 ’18.12.11 https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8477 CVE-2018-8514 Windows 원격 프로시저 호출 런타임 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 ’18.12.11 https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8514 CVE-2018-8580 Microsoft SharePoint Server 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 ’18.12.11 https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8580 CVE-2018-8595 Windows GDI 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 ’18.12.11 https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8595 CVE-2018-8596 Windows GDI 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 ’18.12.11 https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-8596 CVE-2018-8598 Microsoft Excel 메모리 정보 노출 취약점 ’18.12.11 https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/

Official advisory ↗
KISA KrCERT/CC · Korean · KNVD-4975MS 12월 보안 위협에 따른 정기 보안 업데이트 권고

- 정보노출 취약점(CVE-2018-8477,CVE-2018-8514,CVE-2018-8595,CVE-2018-8596,CVE-2018-8639)

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
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
No verified workaround is recorded. Limit untrusted access and use least privilege until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 12 Dec 2018 · Last source change 5 Aug 2024, 07:02 UTC · CWE-665 · Improper Initialization

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-2018-20138
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceNIST NVD
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. ENISA EUVD mappingEUVD-2018-20138 was added to the official ENISA EUVD mapping for this CVE.
    Before
    not recorded
    After
    {"euvdId":"EUVD-2018-20138"}
    ENISA EUVD ↗
  2. Vendor guidanceAuthoritative vendor guidance changed: added patch: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2018-8514; added remediation: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2018-8514.
    Before
    no authoritative guidance recorded
    After
    patch: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2018-8514 · remediation: portal.msrc.microsoft.com/CVE-2018-8514
    portal.msrc.microsoft.com ↗
  3. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    32-bit Systems Service Pack 1; x64-based Systems Service Pack 1; (Server Core installation); Windows RT 8.1; 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2; 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation); Itanium-Based Systems Service Pack 2; x64-based Systems Service Pack 2 · Fixed: No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
    After
    32-bit Systems Service Pack 1; x64-based Systems Service Pack 1; (Server Core installation); Windows RT 8.1; 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2; 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation); Itanium-Based Systems Service Pack 2; x64-based Systems Service Pack 2 · 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 Medium.
    Before
    Unknown
    After
    Medium
    NIST NVD ↗
  6. CVSS scoreCVSS score changed from not recorded to 5.5 (CVSS 3.0 · NIST NVD · CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).
    Before
    not recorded
    After
    5.5 (CVSS 3.0 · NIST NVD · CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N)
    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-2018-20138↗Patch or update reference↗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-2018-8514 · cve.blacktree.nl