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8.8
HIGH CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-96940
Microsoft Exchange Server Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability
Overview
Description

Weak authentication in Microsoft Exchange Server allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.

Details
INFO

Published Date :

Oct. 2, 2026, 7:16 p.m.

Last Modified :

Oct. 15, 2026, 2:35 a.m.

Remotely Exploit :

No

Source :

[email protected]
Impact
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-96940 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Microsoft exchange_server
2 Microsoft exchange_server_se
3 Microsoft exchange_server_2019
4 Microsoft exchange_server_2016
5 Microsoft exchange_server_subscription_edition
: Total Affected Vendor : 1 | Products : 5
Scoring
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
CVSS 3.1 HIGH f38d906d-7342-40ea-92c1-6c4a2c6478c8
CVSS 3.1 HIGH [email protected]
References
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools

Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to CVE-2026-96940.

URL Resource
https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-96940 Patch Vendor Advisory
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-96940 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-96940 weaknesses.

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-96940 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

  • The Hacker News
⚡ Weekly Recap: Helpdesk 0-Days, Rogue Certs, ShinyHunters Arrest, AI-Fooling Malware and More

Some meetings last longer than it took attackers to jump on a newly disclosed security flaw this week. Within hours, they were already testing it. That's not much time to read the warning, let alone d ... Read more

Published Date: Oct 12, 2026 (1 week, 4 days ago)
  • TheCyberThrone
Microsoft Releases Out-of-Band Exchange Security Update

October 6, 2026Executive SummaryMicrosoft has released an out-of-band security update for Exchange Server to address CVE-2026-96940, an Elevation of Privilege vulnerability that could allow an authent ... Read more

Published Date: Oct 06, 2026 (2 weeks, 3 days ago)
  • The Hacker News
Microsoft Exchange Flaw Lets Authenticated Attackers Read Other Users' Mailboxes

Microsoft has released out-of-band security updates to address a high-severity flaw in Microsoft Exchange Server that could allow an attacker to escalate privileges under certain conditions. The vulne ... Read more

Published Date: Oct 05, 2026 (2 weeks, 4 days ago)
  • security.nl
Microsoft verwacht misbruik van Exchange-lek dat toegang tot mailboxes geeft

Microsoft verwacht dat aanvallers misbruik zullen gaan maken van een nieuwe kwetsbaarheid in Exchange Server waarvoor afgelopen vrijdag 2 oktober updates verschenen. Via het beveiligingslek kan een ge ... Read more

Published Date: Oct 04, 2026 (2 weeks, 5 days ago)

Results are limited to the first 20 news articles due to potential performance issues.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-96940 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • Initial Analysis by [email protected]

    Oct. 15, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2016:cumulative_update_23:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2019:cumulative_update_14:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2019:cumulative_update_15:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server_subscription_edition:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 15.02.2562.053
    Added Reference Type Microsoft Corporation: https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-96940 Types: Patch, Vendor Advisory
  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Oct. 13, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Removed SSVC {'id': 'CVE-2026-96940', 'role': 'CISA Coordinator', 'options': [{'exploitation': 'none'}, {'automatable': 'no'}, {'technicalImpact': 'total'}], 'version': '2.0.3', 'timestamp': '2026-10-02T00:00:00+00:00'}
    Added SSVC {'id': 'CVE-2026-96940', 'role': 'CISA Coordinator', 'options': [{'exploitation': 'none'}, {'automatable': 'no'}, {'technicalImpact': 'total'}], 'version': '2.0.3', 'timestamp': '2026-10-13T19:39:06.809563Z'}
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Oct. 13, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed Description An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when Microsoft Exchange Outlook Web Access (OWA) fails to properly handle web requests. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could perform script/content injection attacks and attempt to trick the user into disclosing sensitive information. To exploit the vulnerability, an attacker could send a specially crafted email message containing a malicious link to a user. Alternatively, an attacker could use a chat client to social engineer a user into clicking the malicious link. The security update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how Microsoft Exchange validates web requests. Note: In order to exploit this vulnerability, a user must click a maliciously crafted link from an attacker. Weak authentication in Microsoft Exchange Server allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Oct. 08, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed Description Weak authorization in Microsoft Exchange Server allows an authenticated attacker to elevate privileges over a network. An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when Microsoft Exchange Outlook Web Access (OWA) fails to properly handle web requests. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could perform script/content injection attacks and attempt to trick the user into disclosing sensitive information. To exploit the vulnerability, an attacker could send a specially crafted email message containing a malicious link to a user. Alternatively, an attacker could use a chat client to social engineer a user into clicking the malicious link. The security update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how Microsoft Exchange validates web requests. Note: In order to exploit this vulnerability, a user must click a maliciously crafted link from an attacker.
  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Oct. 03, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Removed SSVC {'id': 'CVE-2026-96940', 'role': 'CISA Coordinator', 'options': [{'exploitation': 'none'}, {'automatable': 'no'}, {'technicalImpact': 'total'}], 'version': '2.0.3', 'timestamp': '2026-10-02T20:14:42.856638Z'}
    Added SSVC {'id': 'CVE-2026-96940', 'role': 'CISA Coordinator', 'options': [{'exploitation': 'none'}, {'automatable': 'no'}, {'technicalImpact': 'total'}], 'version': '2.0.3', 'timestamp': '2026-10-02T00:00:00+00:00'}
  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Oct. 02, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added SSVC {'id': 'CVE-2026-96940', 'role': 'CISA Coordinator', 'options': [{'exploitation': 'none'}, {'automatable': 'no'}, {'technicalImpact': 'total'}], 'version': '2.0.3', 'timestamp': '2026-10-02T20:14:42.856638Z'}
  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Oct. 02, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Description Weak authorization in Microsoft Exchange Server allows an authenticated attacker to elevate privileges over a network.
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
    Added CWE CWE-1390
    Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/96xxx/CVE-2026-96940.json">CVE-2026-96940</a>
    Added Reference https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-96940
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.
CVSS
Vulnerability Scoring Details
Base CVSS Score: 8.8
Attack Vector
Attack Complexity
Privileges Required
User Interaction
Scope
Confidentiality Impact
Integrity Impact
Availability Impact