CVE-2026-50368 in Windows
Summary
by MITRE • 07/14/2026
Stack-based buffer overflow in Active Directory Federation Services allows an unauthorized attacker to deny service over a network.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/15/2026
This vulnerability represents a critical stack-based buffer overflow within Active Directory Federation Services that creates significant security implications for enterprise environments relying on federated identity management. The flaw occurs when the system processes specially crafted authentication requests without proper input validation, leading to memory corruption that can be exploited to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service conditions. Such vulnerabilities are classified under CWE-121 as stack-based buffer overflow conditions where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations on the program stack.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service attacks, as it provides potential attack vectors for more sophisticated exploitation techniques. When an attacker successfully triggers the buffer overflow through malformed federation requests, they can potentially execute malicious code with elevated privileges or disrupt the federation services entirely. This creates cascading effects across organizations that depend on federated authentication for single sign-on capabilities, affecting user access to applications and systems that rely on the compromised identity provider infrastructure.
From a threat modeling perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 which covers network denial of service attacks, while also supporting lateral movement capabilities through credential compromise. The attack surface is particularly concerning for organizations using active directory federation services as it represents a fundamental weakness in the identity infrastructure that could enable attackers to gain persistence within the network or escalate privileges. The vulnerability's exploitation typically requires network access to the target federation server and may involve crafting specific authentication protocol messages that trigger the memory corruption.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying Microsoft security patches, implementing network segmentation to limit access to federation servers, and monitoring for unusual authentication patterns or connection attempts. Additional protective measures include disabling unnecessary federation endpoints, implementing strict firewall rules limiting access to federation services, and establishing robust logging and monitoring of authentication requests to detect potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches in identity infrastructure components, as these systems often serve as primary attack targets due to their central role in enterprise authentication processes.