MediumPublic exploit

Windows Kernel Information Disclosure Vulnerability

IdentifiersCVE-2017-8481CWE-200· Exposure of Sensitive Information…

CVE-2017-8481 is an information disclosure vulnerability in the Microsoft Windows kernel affecting Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold/1511/1607/1703, and Windows Server 2016. According to the provided description, the flaw can be triggered by an authenticated attacker using a specially crafted application, causing the kernel to disclose information that should not be accessible. The specific vulnerable function or code path is not identified in the provided content.

For your environment

Are you exposed to this one?

Mallory correlates every CVE against your assets, your vendors, and active adversary campaigns. Know which vulnerabilities matter for you, not just which ones are loud.

Start free trial

ANALYST BRIEF

Impact, mitigation & remediation

What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.

Impact

What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.

Successful exploitation allows an authenticated attacker to obtain sensitive information from kernel memory or other protected kernel-resident data. This information disclosure could reduce the effectiveness of security boundaries such as ASLR or expose data useful for follow-on exploitation, but the provided content does not indicate direct code execution or privilege escalation from this vulnerability alone.

Mitigation

If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.

If immediate patching is not possible, reduce exposure by limiting local or authenticated access to affected systems, restricting the ability to run untrusted applications, and enforcing least-privilege controls. Because exploitation requires an authenticated attacker and a specially crafted application, application control and strong access management may reduce risk. No specific vendor mitigation is provided in the supplied content.

Remediation

Patch, then assume compromise.

Apply the Microsoft security update that addresses CVE-2017-8481 on all affected Windows versions. The provided content does not include KB numbers or patch identifiers, so the appropriate vendor-issued update for the affected platform should be used.

PUBLIC EXPLOITS

Exploits

1 valid exploit after Mallory filtered fakes, detection scripts, and README-only repos (1 hidden).

VALID 1 / 2 TOTALView more in app

CVE-2017-8481MaturityPoCVerified exploit

This repository consists of a single C file, CVE-2017-8481.c, which is a proof-of-concept (POC) exploit for the Windows kernel information disclosure vulnerability CVE-2017-8481. The code dynamically loads the NtQueryInformationResourceManager function from ntdll.dll, creates a transaction manager and resource manager using Windows kernel APIs, and then sprays the kernel stack. It tests various buffer sizes when calling NtQueryInformationResourceManager to observe the returned data, which is printed in hex format. The exploit is designed for research and confirmation of the vulnerability, not for privilege escalation or code execution. The code is intended to be run locally on a Windows system and requires compilation with Visual Studio. The comments indicate that the bug is patched in recent Windows versions (e.g., Windows 11 24H2), and the code is for future research. No network or remote attack vectors are present; the exploit is purely local and interacts with Windows kernel APIs.

TamatahYTDisclosed Aug 25, 2025clocal

EXPOSURE SURFACE

Affected products & vendors

Products and vendors Mallory has correlated with this vulnerability. Open in Mallory to drill down to specific CPE configurations and version ranges.

VendorProductType

Microsoft CorporationWindows 10operating_system

Microsoft CorporationWindows 7operating_system

Microsoft CorporationWindows 8.1operating_system

Microsoft CorporationWindows Rt 8.1operating_system

Microsoft CorporationWindows Server 2008operating_system

Microsoft CorporationWindows Server 2012operating_system

Microsoft CorporationWindows Server 2016operating_system

Vendor-confirmed product mapping. Mallory continuously reconciles this list against your asset inventory.

ACTIVITY FEED

Recent activity

2 sources tracked across advisories and community write-ups. News coverage will land here when it surfaces.

2 SOURCESView more in app

No news coverage yet. Advisories and community discussion only.

What this page doesn’t show

The version that knows your environment.

This page is what’s public. Mallory adds the parts that aren’t: which of your assets are affected, which adversaries are exploiting it right now, which detections to deploy, and what to do tonight.

Start free trial

Exposure mapping

Query your assets running an affected version, and investigate the blast radius.

Threat actor evidence

Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.

Associated malware

Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.

Detection signatures

YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.

Vendor-by-vendor mapping

Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.

Social activity2

Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.

EXTERNAL REFERENCES

MITRE CVE

cve.org · CVE-2017-8481

NVD

nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-8481

MITRE CWE · CWE-200

Exposure of Sensitive Information to an…

Patch

portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2017-8481

Third Party Advisory

securityfocus.com/bid/98862

Third Party Advisory

securitytracker.com/id/1038659

Third Party Advisory

exploit-db.com/exploits/42242

Windows Kernel Information Disclosure Vulnerability

IdentifiersCVE-2017-8481CWE-200· Exposure of Sensitive Information…