Executive brief
Windows Connected User Experiences and Telemetry is a system component responsible for collecting diagnostic and usage data on Windows machines. A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability allows an authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code and escalate privileges on affected systems, potentially compromising the entire machine and any data stored on it.
Technical details
This vulnerability is a heap-based buffer overflow in the Windows Connected User Experiences and Telemetry service. The root cause is improper bounds checking when processing input data, allowing an attacker to overflow a heap buffer and corrupt adjacent memory. An authorized attacker (or one with local/network access to trigger the vulnerable code path) can exploit this to achieve privilege escalation and execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. The vulnerability is network-exploitable and does not require user interaction. A fix is expected to be available through Microsoft Security Updates; users should apply patches when released.
Affected products
- Microsoft Windows Connected User Experiences and Telemetry
Timeline
- 2026-09-08: disclosed