Threats / Microsoft / CVE-2016-0151
CVE-2016-0151
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-08-04
Microsoft Client-Server Run-time Subsystem (CSRSS) vulnerability
Microsoft CSRSS mismanages process tokens, allowing local users to gain elevated privileges through a crafted application.
Verdict
Today item, not a backlog item.
A local privilege escalation vulnerability in the Client-Server Run-time Subsystem enables attackers with user-level access to execute code with system privileges. Active exploitation and ransomware deployment have been observed.
CISA KEV Yes · 2022-03-284Ransomware use Flagged4EPSS 0.63195 (verify live)5CVSS 7.8 (CISA)3CISA SSVC Exploitation: active · Automatable: no · Impact: total3
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreReported exploitation
1 independent public report of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-28), flagged for known ransomware use.
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.63195 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
CVSS 7.8 (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) · Affected: Microsoft, Client-Server Run-time Subsystem (CSRSS). Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.CVSS — CISA-assigned via the ADP container (CVE.org), version 3.1; the CNA left no metrics, so CISA's own score is used ahead of NVD.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-264 Permissions/Privileges/Access Control — weakness family: Authorization / access control.CWE assignment from the public NVD record (may be stale); the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
CISA SSVC (triage disposition)
Exploitation: active · Automatable: no · Technical Impact: totalCISA's own stakeholder-specific triage inputs, published in the CVE record (CISA Coordinator role). NOTE: this is CISA's three decision points; the final Act/Attend/Track decision also requires a Mission & Well-being input not published here, so no overall decision is asserted.
Currency of the record
CISA added this to its KEV catalog 2176 days after the CVE record was published.KEV lag = CISA-KEV dateAdded − CVE.org datePublished; a floor on how long the known-exploited flaw sat in the public record before the federal catalog listed it. Severity/weakness here is CNA- or CISA-assigned (current at disclosure), independent of NVD's analysis backlog.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a malicious application that exploits token mismanagement in CSRSS to request elevated privileges.
Business
An attacker gains local code execution with system-level permissions on affected endpoints.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I execute my application on a compromised system where I already have user-level access.
Business
The vulnerability is triggered, bypassing Windows privilege boundaries and granting administrative control.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I deploy ransomware or additional malicious payloads using the elevated privileges I have obtained.
Business
Critical systems become compromised, leading to data encryption, operational disruption, and potential financial extortion.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05