CVERadar
HIGH · CVSS 3.1 7.8CISA KEV · added 2024-12-10Exploit-DBPublic PoCEPSS 26.21% (p98)Threat level 62

CVE-2024-49138: Microsoft Windows Common Log File System (CLFS) Driver Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

Microsoft · Windows · NVD published 2024-12-12 · posted 2024-12-10 · last modified 2026-06-17

What it is

Windows Common Log File System Driver Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

WeaknessCWE-122
CVSS vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (source: [email protected])
CISA due date2024-12-31 (for US federal agencies under BOD; a good deadline for everyone)
ATT&CK tacticsExecution → Privilege Escalation

Exploitation evidence

First exploit evidence seen: 2024-12-10 (earliest date across the sources below).

Exploited in the wild

  • CISA KEV: listed since 2024-12-10. Source

Public exploit code

Exploit-DB

  • EDB-52270: Microsoft Windows 11 23h2 - CLFS.sys Elevation of Privilege (2025-04-22)

GitHub proof-of-concept repositories

12 public repositories from 12 accounts, first seen 2025-01-15. Most starred: MrAle98/CVE-2024-49138-POC (271 stars), view repository.

Verify before running: public PoCs can be malicious. Read the code and only run it in an isolated lab. A PoC means exploit code is public, not that this CVE is exploited in the wild.

Sources: CISA KEV · Exploit-DB (OffSec) · nomi-sec/PoC-in-GitHub.

Defend the Chain

The attack chain for CVE-2024-49138 laid across the MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise tactics. Solid cards come from the MITRE CTID KEV mappings; dashed cards are inferred by CVERadar from the CWE or description. Correct defences are real ATT&CK mitigations for that technique.

Threat level 62/100
Defender level 1 · 0 XP
Chain links broken: 0/2

Reconnaissance

Resource Development

Initial Access

Execution

Persistence

Privilege Escalation

Stealth

Defense Impairment

Credential Access

Discovery

Lateral Movement

Collection

Command and Control

Exfiltration

Impact

Pick a red technique card on the board, then choose the defence that stops it.

Defend against T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Inferred

Inferred from CWE CWE-122

How to fix it

CISA required action

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. (source: CISA KEV)

Fixed versions

  • microsoft windows 10 1507: upgrade to 10.0.10240.20857 or later
  • microsoft windows 10 1607: upgrade to 10.0.14393.7606 or later
  • microsoft windows 10 1809: upgrade to 10.0.17763.6659 or later
  • microsoft windows 10 21h2: upgrade to 10.0.19044.5247 or later
  • microsoft windows 10 22h2: upgrade to 10.0.19045.5247 or later
  • microsoft windows 11 22h2: upgrade to 10.0.22621.4602 or later
  • microsoft windows 11 23h2: upgrade to 10.0.22631.4602 or later
  • microsoft windows 11 24h2: upgrade to 10.0.26100.2605 or later
  • microsoft windows server 2016: upgrade to 10.0.14393.7606 or later
  • microsoft windows server 2019: upgrade to 10.0.17763.6659 or later
  • microsoft windows server 2022: upgrade to 10.0.20348.2966 or later
  • microsoft windows server 2022 23h2: upgrade to 10.0.25398.1308 or later
  • microsoft windows server 2025: upgrade to 10.0.26100.2605 or later

Derived from the NVD CPE configuration (versionEndExcluding / versionEndIncluding). Always confirm with the vendor advisory.

Vendor advisories and patches

MITRE ATT&CK mitigations for this chain

  • M1050 Exploit Protection (for T1203, T1068) : Security applications that look for behavior used during exploitation such as Windows Defender Exploit Guard (WDEG) and the Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit (EMET) can be used to mitigate some exploitation behavior. Control flow integrity checking is another way to potentially identify and stop a software exploi
  • M1051 Update Software (for T1203, T1068) : Perform regular software updates to mitigate exploitation risk. Keeping software up-to-date with the latest security patches helps prevent adversaries from exploiting known vulnerabilities in client software, reducing the risk of successful attacks.
  • M1048 Application Isolation and Sandboxing (for T1203, T1068) : Browser sandboxes can be used to mitigate some of the impact of exploitation, but sandbox escapes may still exist. Other types of virtualization and application microsegmentation may also mitigate the impact of client-side exploitation. Risks of additional exploits and weaknesses in those systems may still exist.
  • M1019 Threat Intelligence Program (for T1068) : Develop a robust cyber threat intelligence capability to determine what types and levels of threat may use software exploits and 0-days against a particular organization.
  • M1038 Execution Prevention (for T1068) : Consider blocking the execution of known vulnerable drivers that adversaries may exploit to execute code in kernel mode. Validate driver block rules in audit mode to ensure stability prior to production deployment.

Detection Generic guidance

  • Execution: Watch for the service process spawning shells or script interpreters (cmd.exe, powershell, sh, bash, python) via EDR process-tree rules.
  • Privilege Escalation: Alert on processes gaining SYSTEM/root unexpectedly, and on exploitation crashes of privileged services.

Response checklist Generic guidance

  1. Inventory: find every instance of the affected product and version (include internet-facing and forgotten ones).
  2. Patch or mitigate per the vendor advisory; if you cannot patch, remove internet exposure or apply the vendor workaround.
  3. Assume compromise if the system was exposed before patching: hunt for the indicators in the advisory and review logs back to the disclosure date.
  4. Rotate credentials and secrets stored on or used by the affected system if compromise cannot be ruled out.

Sources