Patch tracker / CVE reference / CVE-2026-21236
CVE-2026-21236
CVE-2026-21236 is a Microsoft vulnerability that Microsoft rates Important, with a CVSS score of 7.8 (High). Microsoft has shipped the fix: deploy one of the 14 updates below from the Microsoft Update Catalog, and see where this CVE sits against the rest on the patch tracker.
Our data comes from Microsoft, CISA and other public sources, and it can be wrong or out of date. If you are unsure, check the linked source before you act, and tell us when we are wrong so we can fix it.
Microsoft rates it Important. CVSS 7.8 (High). Fixed by 14 Microsoft security updates.
Risk summary
Not in the CISA KEV catalog. EPSS exploit probability <1%. CVSS 7.8 (High).
This CVE is among the lower half of tracked Microsoft CVEs by EPSS exploit probability.
This is a WinSock AFD.sys elevation of privilege flaw carrying High Severity (CVSS 8.8), which is notable because AFD is a network driver reachable by any local process, making it a favored path for turning code execution into SYSTEM. It affects both the newer Windows 11 26H1 (ARM64 and x64) and the older Windows 10 1809, so exposure spans modern and legacy fleets. It is not in CISA KEV and has no known ransomware use, but the 26 percent EPSS score is elevated for an unexploited bug in a driver historically abused in attack chains.
Do this: Deploy the current Microsoft patch to Windows 11 26H1 (ARM64 and x64) and Windows 10 1809 machines, prioritizing multi-user and internet-facing hosts.
AI-generated from public data, 2026-07-24. Verify against the vendor advisory before acting.
Senserva AI Opinion and rich prompt for CVE-2026-21236
Copy this prompt into Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot. The facts are included, sourced from this page.
Official patch(es) for CVE-2026-21236
Moderate priority: schedule it in your normal patch cycle. In Intune or Defender, confirm whether the fixing updates KB5075897, KB5075899, KB5075904, KB5075906, KB5075912, KB5075941, KB5075942, KB5075943, KB5075970, KB5075971, KB5075999, KB5077179, KB5077181, KB5077212 are installed across the affected products. Senserva does this automatically across your tenant and flags every missing patch.
Apply the Microsoft security updates below to fix CVE-2026-21236. Each KB page carries the Microsoft Update Catalog download, Microsoft's known issues for the update, a copy-paste PowerShell check for whether it is installed, and the Senserva AI read.
Scope and sources
- Affected products
- Windows 10 Version 1607 for 32-bit Systems
- Windows 10 Version 1607 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 10 Version 1809 for 32-bit Systems
- Windows 10 Version 1809 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 10 Version 21H2 for 32-bit Systems
- Windows 10 Version 21H2 for ARM64-based Systems
- Windows 10 Version 21H2 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 10 Version 22H2 for 32-bit Systems
- Windows 10 Version 22H2 for ARM64-based Systems
- Windows 10 Version 22H2 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 23H2 for ARM64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 23H2 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 24H2 for ARM64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 24H2 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 25H2 for ARM64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 25H2 for x64-based Systems
- Windows 11 Version 26H1 for ARM64-based Systems
- Windows 11 version 26H1 for x64-based Systems
- Windows Server 2012
- Windows Server 2012 (Server Core installation)
- Windows Server 2012 R2
- Windows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation)
- Windows Server 2016
- Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation)
- Windows Server 2019
- Windows Server 2019 (Server Core installation)
- Windows Server 2022
- Windows Server 2022 (Server Core installation)
- Windows Server 2022, 23H2 Edition (Server Core installation)
- Windows Server 2025
- Windows Server 2025 (Server Core installation)
- Fixed by the same updates
- Authoritative references
Want every Microsoft CVE and the patches that fix it, ranked by real-world risk? See the Microsoft Patch Tracker.