Physical privilege escalation via dialog error mishandling
Published May 21, 2020 · Updated Aug 19, 2026
Improper error handling in the Windows Remote Access Common Dialog allows physically proximate attackers to execute code with elevated privileges. The dialog mishandles an error condition at the logon screen, allowing execution to proceed with elevated privileges; Microsoft has not disclosed the specific error path or operation. Physical access to a booted machine and its logon screen is required, and successful exploitation permits complete system takeover.
Summary
What happened
Improper error handling in the Windows Remote Access Common Dialog allows physically proximate attackers to execute code with elevated privileges. The dialog mishandles an error condition at the logon screen, allowing execution to proceed with elevated privileges; Microsoft has not disclosed the specific error path or operation. Physical access to a booted machine and its logon screen is required, and successful exploitation permits complete system takeover.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2020-1071
- Published
- May 21, 2020
- Updated
- Aug 19, 2026
- Vendor
- Microsoft
- Product
- Windows 10 Version 1507
- Classifications
- CWE-755, T1068
- Attack vector
- physical
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- May 21, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 19, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
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- Affected versionversion=10.0.10240.0 <publication
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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