CVE-2026-41091 — Security Box Score

CVE · referencelatest edition

Reference page — cumulative record through Wednesday, August 19, 2026 UTC. Reference pages update as the archive grows; only dated daily editions are immutable pages of record.

CVE-2026-41091HIGH

Microsoft Defender Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

  AV  AC  PR  UI  S  C  I  A   CVSS    EPSS   %ile   KEV
   L   L   L   N  U  H  H  H    7.8   .0964   95.1   YES

AFFECTED
  Product                              Versions   Fixed
  Microsoft Malware Protection Engine  1.1.0.0 –  —

TIMELINE
  Apr 16  Reserved by microsoft
  May 20  Added to CISA KEV, remediation due 2026-06-03
  May 20  Published (CNA: microsoft)
  Jun 4   DUE DATE PASSED — CVE-2026-41091 (Microsoft Malware Protection Engine). CISA remediation deadline was June 3, 2026; still in catalog.
  Jul 24  ENRICHED — CVE-2026-41091 (Microsoft Defender). Received CVSS 7.8 and CPE data from NVD.

CWE-59 · CNA: microsoft · CVSS v3.1 · 2 references · NVD status: Analyzed · KEV due June 3, 2026

Description

Improper link resolution before file access ('link following') in Microsoft Defender allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Lifecycle

Complete event history — 5 events, chronological
Date	Event	Detail
April 16, 2026	Reserved	Reserved by microsoft
May 20, 2026	KEV ADDED	Added to CISA KEV, remediation due 2026-06-03
May 20, 2026	Published	Published (CNA: microsoft)
June 4, 2026	DUE DATE PASSED	DUE DATE PASSED — CVE-2026-41091 (Microsoft Malware Protection Engine). CISA remediation deadline was June 3, 2026; still in catalog.
July 24, 2026	ENRICHED	ENRICHED — CVE-2026-41091 (Microsoft Defender). Received CVSS 7.8 and CPE data from NVD.

Affected

Affected products and packages — 1 row
Vendor	Product / Package	Ecosystem	Version introduced	Fixed
Microsoft	Microsoft Malware Protection Engine	—	1.1.0.0	—

Weaknesses

CWE-59

References (2)

https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-41091 [Vendor Advisory]
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-41091 [Third Party Advisory, US Government Resource]

Authoritative record: CVE-2026-41091 at cve.org

Vendors: microsoft

Weaknesses: CWE-59

About this page

This is a reference page, not a dated page of record. It assembles the complete lifecycle of CVE-2026-41091 from the CVE Program record, NVD enrichment, the CISA KEV catalog, EPSS, and OSV advisories. The box score's numbers (CVSS, EPSS, KEV status) are current as of Wednesday, August 19, 2026 UTC and are re-derived as the archive grows; only dated daily editions are immutable pages of record. The authoritative source for this identifier is cve.org.