Missing Authorization in Microsoft Windows and Windows Server - CVE-2026-119852
Published: November 11, 2026
Vulnerability identifier: #VU165288
CSH Severity: Medium
CVSS v4: 7.1 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N]
CVE-ID: CVE-2026-119852
CWE-ID: CWE-862
Exploitation vector: Local access
Exploit availability:
No public exploit available
Vulnerability details
The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges and delete arbitrary files that are inaccessible to unprivileged users on the victim machine.
The vulnerability exists due to missing authorization in Windows Installer when handling local installer operations. A local user can win a race condition to delete files beyond their authorized access rights.
Successful exploitation requires a user with administrator privileges to perform specific operations on the targeted endpoint.
Affected software
Microsoft Windows
Windows Server
Windows Server
How to mitigate CVE-2026-119852
Install security update from vendor's website.
Microsoft Windows - addressed in versions 10 21H2 10.0.19044.7846, 10 22H2 10.0.19045.7846, 10 1607 10.0.14393.9688, 10 1809 10.0.17763.9487, 11 23H2 10.0.22631.7711, 11 24H2 10.0.26100.9911, 11 24H2 10.0.26100.9974, 11 25H2 10.0.26200.9911, 11 25H2 10.0.26200.9974, 11 26H1 10.0.28000.3501
Windows Server - addressed in versions 2016 10.0.14393.9688, 2019 10.0.17763.9487, 2022 10.0.20348.5870, 2025 10.0.26100.33730, 2025 10.0.26100.33822
Windows Server - addressed in versions 2016 10.0.14393.9688, 2019 10.0.17763.9487, 2022 10.0.20348.5870, 2025 10.0.26100.33730, 2025 10.0.26100.33822