Security feature bypass
Published Sep 12, 2023 · Updated Oct 30, 2025
Security feature bypass in Microsoft Defender Security Intelligence Updates before 1.391.1332.0 allows local users to bypass Attack Surface Reduction controls. Microsoft does not publicly disclose the component or operation that permits the bypass, so the precise mechanism remains undocumented. Exploitation requires local execution on a Windows device using affected Defender intelligence content; the documented impact is circumvention of the intended security control rather than a separately demonstrated confidentiality, integrity, or availability compromise.
Summary
What happened
Security feature bypass in Microsoft Defender Security Intelligence Updates before 1.391.1332.0 allows local users to bypass Attack Surface Reduction controls. Microsoft does not publicly disclose the component or operation that permits the bypass, so the precise mechanism remains undocumented. Exploitation requires local execution on a Windows device using affected Defender intelligence content; the documented impact is circumvention of the intended security control rather than a separately demonstrated confidentiality, integrity, or availability compromise.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-38163
- Published
- Sep 12, 2023
- Updated
- Oct 30, 2025
- Vendor
- Microsoft
- Product
- Microsoft Defender Security Intelligence Updates
- Classifications
- T1562.001
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 12, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Oct 30, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=1.0.0 <1.391.1332.0
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
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.
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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