CVE-2026-41091

Microsoft Defender Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

Basic Information

CVE State: PUBLISHED
Reserved Date: April 16, 2026
Published Date: May 20, 2026
Last Updated: May 26, 2026
Vendor: Microsoft
Product: Microsoft Malware Protection Engine
Description: Improper link resolution before file access ('link following') in Microsoft Defender allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.
Tags

CVSS Scores

CVSS v3.1

7.8 - HIGH

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C

SSVC Information

Exploitation: active
Technical Impact: total

Exploit Status

Exploited in the Wild: Yes (2026-06-01 13:29:26 UTC) Source

References

https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-41091

Known Exploited Vulnerability Information

Source	Added Date
CVE	2026-06-01 13:29:26 UTC

Timeline

CVE ID Reserved

April 16, 2026
CVE Published to Public

May 20, 2026
Added to KEVIntel

June 01, 2026