{"id":"CVE-2023-36884","kind":"vulnerability","aliases":["CVE-2023-36884"],"related":[],"title":"Windows Search Remote Code Execution Vulnerability","description":"Microsoft Windows Search contains an unspecified vulnerability that could allow an attacker to evade Mark of the Web (MOTW) defenses via a specially crafted malicious file, leading to remote code execution.\n\nCISA required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.","summary":"Microsoft Windows Search has a flaw that lets a crafted malicious file bypass Mark of the Web warnings. An attacker who gets a user to open such a file can run code on the machine.","severity":"high","cvss":7.5,"epss":null,"exploited":true,"exploited_at":"2023-07-17T00:00:00+00:00","products":[{"name":"Microsoft Windows","fixed":[],"affected":"","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 10 1507","fixed":["10.0.10240.20107"],"affected":"< 10.0.10240.20107","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 10 1607","fixed":["10.0.14393.6167"],"affected":"< 10.0.14393.6167","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 10 1809","fixed":["10.0.17763.4737"],"affected":"< 10.0.17763.4737","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 10 21h2","fixed":["10.0.19044.3324"],"affected":"< 10.0.19044.3324","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 10 22h2","fixed":["10.0.19044.3324"],"affected":"< 10.0.19044.3324","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 11 21h2","fixed":["10.0.22000.2295"],"affected":"< 10.0.22000.2295","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows 11 22h2","fixed":["10.0.22621.2134"],"affected":"< 10.0.22621.2134","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2008","fixed":[],"affected":"","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2008","fixed":[],"affected":"= r2","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2012","fixed":[],"affected":"","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2012","fixed":[],"affected":"= r2","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2016","fixed":["10.0.14393.6167"],"affected":"< 10.0.14393.6167","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2019","fixed":["10.0.17763.4737"],"affected":"< 10.0.17763.4737","ecosystem":"vendor"},{"name":"microsoft windows server 2022","fixed":["10.0.20348.1903"],"affected":"< 10.0.20348.1903","ecosystem":"vendor"}],"ecosystems":["vendor"],"tags":["exploited","infrastructure","ransomware","windows","windows-search"],"not_affected_if":["unknown"],"how_to_check":null,"fix":"Apply the Microsoft mitigation or update for CVE-2023-36884 per vendor instructions; the sources do not name the patch or version.","status":"open","published_at":"2023-07-11T19:15:09+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:51+00:00","triaged_at":"2026-10-23T21:04:54+00:00","updated_at":"2026-10-23T22:29:04+00:00","category":"infrastructure","confidence":0.6,"triage":{"at":"2026-10-23T21:04:54Z","model":"claude-haiku-5-5","output":{"fix":"Apply the Microsoft mitigation or update for CVE-2023-36884 per vendor instructions; the sources do not name the patch or version.","reach":"unknown","impact":"high","summary":"Microsoft Windows Search has a flaw that lets a crafted malicious file bypass Mark of the Web warnings. An attacker who gets a user to open such a file can run code on the machine.","category":"infrastructure","who_cares":["windows","windows-search"],"confidence":0.6,"needs_auth":"no","worst_case":"Attacker runs code on the Windows machine after a user opens a crafted file.","analyst_note":"Find Microsoft's July 2023 advisory for CVE-2023-36884 to confirm affected Windows builds, patch KB numbers and the exact mitigation steps.","how_to_check":"unknown","needs_analyst":true,"not_affected_if":["unknown"],"user_interaction":"yes","needs_special_setup":"unknown","severity_if_unknown":"high"},"cost_usd":0.000457,"input_tokens":2836,"output_tokens":346,"severity_before":"unknown"},"analyst_status":null,"analyst_note":null,"search":"'-2023':8A,11A '-36884':9A,12A '10':17A,21A,25A,29A,33A '11':37A,41A '1507':18A '1607':22A '1809':26A '2008':46A,50A '2012':54A,58A '2016':62A '2019':66A '2022':70A '21h2':30A,38A '22h2':34A,42A 'action':146C 'allow':122C 'appli':147C 'attack':97B,124C 'bypass':90B 'cisa':144C 'code':4A,109B,142C 'contain':116C 'could':121C 'craft':87B,136C 'cve':7A,10A 'defens':132C 'discontinu':153C 'evad':126C 'execut':5A,143C 'exploit':71B 'file':89B,106B,138C 'flaw':83B 'get':99B 'infrastructur':72B 'instruct':151C 'lead':139C 'let':85B 'machin':112B 'malici':88B,137C 'mark':91B,127C 'microsoft':13A,15A,19A,23A,27A,31A,35A,39A,43A,47A,51A,55A,59A,63A,67A,78B,113C 'mitig':148C,159C 'motw':131C 'open':103B 'per':149C 'product':157C 'ransomwar':73B 'remot':3A,141C 'requir':145C 'run':108B 'search':2A,77B,80B,115C 'server':45A,49A,53A,57A,61A,65A,69A 'special':135C 'unavail':161C 'unspecifi':118C 'use':154C 'user':101B 'vendor':150C 'via':133C 'vulner':6A,119C 'warn':95B 'web':94B,130C 'window':1A,74B,76B,79B,114C 'windows':14A,16A,20A,24A,28A,32A,36A,40A,44A,48A,52A,56A,60A,64A,68A 'windows-search':75B","nicknames":[],"mitigations":[],"who_affected":null,"tier":null,"verified":{},"analyst_revisit_at":null,"first_public_at":"2023-07-11T19:15:09+00:00","kev":{"dateAdded":"2023-07-17","dueDate":"2023-08-29","requiredAction":"Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.","knownRansomwareCampaignUse":"Known"},"cvss_vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","cvss_by":"secure@microsoft.com","poc_count":0,"sources":[{"source":"kev","external_id":"CVE-2023-36884","url":"https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?search_api_fulltext=CVE-2023-36884","severity":null,"published_at":"2023-07-17T00:00:00+00:00","modified_at":null,"first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:51+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-25T15:39:41+00:00","note":null},{"source":"nvd","external_id":"CVE-2023-36884","url":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-36884","severity":null,"published_at":"2023-07-11T19:15:09+00:00","modified_at":"2026-08-10T16:18:30+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T22:29:04+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-23T22:29:04+00:00","note":null}],"documents":[],"notice":"Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai"}