Tenant-wide code execution via mismatched PoP tokens
Published Jan 13, 2026 · Updated Jan 13, 2026
Token validation in Microsoft Windows Admin Center in Azure before 0.70.0.0 allows local users with administrator access to execute code remotely. The WAC API accepts a PoP token whose user identity does not match the privileged WAC.CheckAccess token, enabling the tokens to be combined across users and tenants. Exploitation requires local administrator access to a WAC-managed machine and a privileged user connection; successful requests run commands as an administrator on other WAC-enabled machines.
Summary
What happened
Token validation in Microsoft Windows Admin Center in Azure before 0.70.0.0 allows local users with administrator access to execute code remotely. The WAC API accepts a PoP token whose user identity does not match the privileged WAC.CheckAccess token, enabling the tokens to be combined across users and tenants. Exploitation requires local administrator access to a WAC-managed machine and a privileged user connection; successful requests run commands as an administrator on other WAC-enabled machines.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-20965
- Published
- Jan 13, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 13, 2026
- Vendor
- Microsoft
- Product
- Windows Admin Center in Azure
- Classifications
- CWE-347, T1550.001
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- admin
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=1.0 <0.70.0.0
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
- Cymulate token-mixing exploitation examplefunctional · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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