Arbitrary file deletion via directory junction
Published Nov 24, 2021 · Updated Aug 19, 2026
Privilege escalation in Microsoft Windows Update Assistant allows local users to delete arbitrary files through its privileged execution context. The assistant follows an attacker-created directory junction during a privileged file-deletion operation, redirecting deletion to a chosen file. The path requires prior low-privileged code execution on the Windows host; Microsoft reports availability impact without direct disclosure or modification of data.
Summary
What happened
Privilege escalation in Microsoft Windows Update Assistant allows local users to delete arbitrary files through its privileged execution context. The assistant follows an attacker-created directory junction during a privileged file-deletion operation, redirecting deletion to a chosen file. The path requires prior low-privileged code execution on the Windows host; Microsoft reports availability impact without direct disclosure or modification of data.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-43211
- Published
- Nov 24, 2021
- Updated
- Aug 19, 2026
- Vendor
- Microsoft
- Product
- Windows Update Assistant
- Classifications
- CWE-269, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Nov 24, 2021CVE 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=10.0.0 <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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