Microsoft Windows up to Server 2025 Network Policy Server use after free

CVSS Meta Temp Score
CVSS is a standardized scoring system to determine possibilities of attacks. The Temp Score considers temporal factors like disclosure, exploit and countermeasures. The unique Meta Score calculates the average score of different sources to provide a normalized scoring system.
Current Exploit Price (≈)
Our analysts are monitoring exploit markets and are in contact with vulnerability brokers. The range indicates the observed or calculated exploit price to be seen on exploit markets. A good indicator to understand the monetary effort required for and the popularity of an attack.
CTI Interest Score
Our Cyber Threat Intelligence team is monitoring different web sites, mailing lists, exploit markets and social media networks. The CTI Interest Score identifies the interest of attackers and the security community for this specific vulnerability in real-time. A high score indicates an elevated risk to be targeted for this vulnerability.
8.8$25k-$100k0.35

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability identified as very critical has been detected in Microsoft Windows. Affected by this vulnerability is an unknown functionality of the component Network Policy Server. This manipulation causes use after free. This vulnerability is registered as CVE-2026-85371. Remote exploitation of the attack is possible. No exploit is available. To fix this issue, it is recommended to deploy a patch.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Microsoft Windows. It has been declared as very critical. Affected by this vulnerability is some unknown functionality of the component Network Policy Server. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

Use after free in Network Policy Server (NPS) allows an unauthorized attacker to execute code over a network.

It is possible to read the advisory at msrc.microsoft.com. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2026-85371 since 09/03/2026. The exploitation appears to be easy. The attack can be launched remotely. The exploitation doesn't need any form of authentication. The technical details are unknown and an exploit is not publicly available. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $25k-$100k at the moment (estimation calculated on 10/14/2026).

Applying a patch is able to eliminate this problem.

Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

Vendor

Name

Version

License

Website

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 9.1
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 8.8

VulDB Base Score: 10.0
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CNA Base Score: 8.1
CNA Vector (microsoft): 🔒

CVSSv2info

AVACAuCIA
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VectorComplexityAuthenticationConfidentialityIntegrityAvailability
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VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Use after free
CWE: CWE-416 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined
Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

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Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Patch
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Timelineinfo

09/03/2026 CVE reserved
10/14/2026 +41 days Advisory disclosed
10/14/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
10/14/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: microsoft.com
Product: microsoft.com

Advisory: msrc.microsoft.com
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-85371 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-85371
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-419155
scip Labs: https://www.scip.ch/en/?labs.20161215

Entryinfo

Created: 10/14/2026 07:52
Changes: 10/14/2026 07:52 (63)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

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