Local privilege escalation via embedded engine search path
Published Mar 31, 2026 · Updated Mar 31, 2026
Uncontrolled search path handling in Microsoft vcpkg before 3.6.1#3 allows local users to execute code with elevated privileges on Windows. The Windows OpenSSL port embeds the build machine's package directory as OPENSSLDIR, causing later engine searches to include an attacker-creatable matching path. A low-privilege user must plant an engine there before a higher-privilege user deploys and loads the affected build, enabling code execution at the latter's privilege level.
Summary
What happened
Uncontrolled search path handling in Microsoft vcpkg before 3.6.1#3 allows local users to execute code with elevated privileges on Windows. The Windows OpenSSL port embeds the build machine's package directory as OPENSSLDIR, causing later engine searches to include an attacker-creatable matching path. A low-privilege user must plant an engine there before a higher-privilege user deploys and loads the affected build, enabling code execution at the latter's privilege level.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-34054
- Published
- Mar 31, 2026
- Updated
- Mar 31, 2026
- Vendor
- Microsoft
- Product
- vcpkg
- Classifications
- CWE-427, CAPEC-38, T1574.001
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Mar 31, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Mar 31, 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=< 3.6.1#3
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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