Exploited· due 2022-03-247.8highHighused in ransomware

CVE-2015-1701

Microsoft Windows 2003 Server

Win32k.sys in the kernel-mode drivers in Microsoft Windows Server 2003 SP2, Vista SP2, and Server 2008 SP2 allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted application, as exploited in the wild in April 2015, aka "Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."

Exploitation status

CISA has confirmed this is being exploited in the wild. That is an observation of real attacks, not a prediction.
It is known to have been used in ransomware campaigns.
US federal civilian agencies are required to remediate it by 2022-03-24. That deadline does not bind private companies, but it is a reasonable benchmark for how urgently CISA views it.
A vendor advisory or patch reference has been published.

Required action

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

CISA’s wording, unedited.

What the metrics mean

It is requires local access to the machine.
For an attacker who can reach it, no special conditions are needed to exploit it.
To exploit it, an ordinary user account is needed.
Beyond that, no action by a user is required.

Scoring

CVSS: 7.8 (v3.1)
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Assigned by: secure@microsoft.com

Dates

Published: 2015-04-21
Last modified: 2026-08-14
Added to KEV: 2022-03-03
Remediation due: 2022-03-24
Sources: CISA KEV, NVD

Affected products

Microsoft Windows 2003 Serverall versions, r2
Microsoft Windows 7all versions
Microsoft Windows Server 2008all versions
Microsoft Windows Vistaall versions

As listed in the NVD configuration data. Not a statement about your estate.