Quick answers
- Is CVE-2026-42981 exploited in the wild?
- No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-42981 being exploited in the wild.
- How severe is CVE-2026-42981?
- High severity, with a CVSS score of 8.1, published 9 June 2026.
- Which products and versions are affected?
- Microsoft Windows Performance Monitor.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2026-42981?
- No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.
- How is CVE-2026-42981 attacked?
- It is attacked over the network, in an operating system.
- Am I affected by CVE-2026-42981?
- Check whether you run Microsoft Windows Performance Monitor. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.
Technical details
An integer underflow (CWE-191) vulnerability exists in the Windows Performance Monitor component. The flaw is triggered when the application fails to properly validate input data, leading to a wrap or wraparound condition during memory allocation or buffer management. An unauthenticated attacker can exploit this over the network to achieve remote code execution. While the attack vector is network-based, the CVSS score reflects a high attack complexity, suggesting specific environmental conditions or timing may be required for successful exploitation. Microsoft has released security updates to address this issue.
Affected products
- Microsoft Windows Performance Monitor
Timeline
- 2026-06-09: disclosed
- 2026-06-09: advisory