CVEs / CVE-2014-1812
CVE-2014-1812: Microsoft Windows Group Policy Preferences Password Privilege Escalation Vulnerability
- Known exploited in the CISA KEV catalog since 3 Nov 2021
- high 9 CVSS 2.0 (NVD)
- EPSS 65.1% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 99% of CVEs (30 Oct 2026)
- Last changed at its sources
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Summary
Microsoft Windows Active Directory contains a privilege escalation vulnerability due to the way it distributes passwords that are configured using Group Policy preferences. An authenticated attacker who successfully exploits the vulnerability could decrypt the passwords and use them to elevate privileges on the domain.
Description
The Group Policy implementation in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2 does not properly handle distribution of passwords, which allows remote authenticated users to obtain sensitive credential information and consequently gain privileges by leveraging access to the SYSVOL share, as exploited in the wild in May 2014, aka "Group Policy Preferences Password Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
Affected and fixed versions
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| n/a n/a | n/a | — |
Exploitation
| In CISA KEV since | 3 Nov 2021 |
|---|---|
| Due date for US federal agencies | 3 May 2022 |
| Used in ransomware campaigns | Known |
| Required action | Apply updates per vendor instructions. |
Severity
| CVSS 2.0 | 9 highAV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:C/I:C/A:CScored by NVD |
|---|---|
| Weakness | CWE-255, CWE-522 |
References
- CVE-2014-1812 on NVD
- CVE-2014-1812 in the CISA KEV catalog
- http://blogs.technet.com/b/srd/archive/2014/05/13/ms14-025-an-update-for-group-policy-preferences.aspx Third Party Advisory
- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2014/ms14-025 Patch, Vendor Advisory
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2014-1812 US Government Resource
Sources
Exploitation status from the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. EPSS scores from FIRST. Descriptions, severity and references from the National Vulnerability Database. Open-source package versions from OSV (CC-BY 4.0). Text is shown as each source states it; Stackurity does not edit it. Check the vendor's advisory before acting.
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.