CVE-2026-88121

8.0High

Published 13 Oct 2026 · NVD status: Undergoing Analysis · AI triage by gemini-3.8-flash

8.0High

Attack vector: Adjacent network
Complexity: Low
Privileges needed: Low
User interaction: None
Impact: Full C/I/A compromise
Weakness: CWE-416

Impact

Attackers on the adjacent network with low privileges can execute arbitrary code on the target system. They need network access to the target and a valid low-privileged account.

Root cause

A use-after-free vulnerability in the Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) allows memory corruption during network operations.

Affected systems

Versions not listed — check the vendor advisory.

CVSS v3.1 · CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Fix & remediation

Check the MSRC advisory for the corresponding Windows update patch; if patching must wait, stop and disable the BITS service ('BITS') via service management.

shell

$ powershell -Command "Stop-Service BITS -PassThru; Set-Service BITS -StartupType Disabled"

AI-suggested. Run it in staging first and check it against the vendor advisory. Why?

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NVD description

Use after free in Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) allows an unauthorized attacker to execute code over a network.

References

https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-88121

Source: nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-88121