Physical information disclosure via absolute path traversal
Published Jan 13, 2026 · Updated Jan 13, 2026
Absolute path traversal in Microsoft Windows Shell allows physically proximate attackers to disclose private information by spoofing paths. Microsoft identifies Windows Shell as the locus but has not disclosed which path-handling operation accepts an absolute path or how the path is rendered deceptively. Physical access is required, and the published impact is limited to disclosure without modification or service interruption.
Summary
What happened
Absolute path traversal in Microsoft Windows Shell allows physically proximate attackers to disclose private information by spoofing paths. Microsoft identifies Windows Shell as the locus but has not disclosed which path-handling operation accepts an absolute path or how the path is rendered deceptively. Physical access is required, and the published impact is limited to disclosure without modification or service interruption.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-20834
- Published
- Jan 13, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 13, 2026
- Vendor
- Microsoft
- Product
- Windows Server 2019
- Classifications
- CWE-359, CWE-36
- Attack vector
- physical
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 13, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jan 13, 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?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=10.0.17763.0 <10.0.17763.8276
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.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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