CVE-2026-21533
Remote Desktop Services — elevation of privilege zero-day
Exploited in the Wild
Actively exploited zero-day. Patched February 2026.
Summary
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Driver | Remote Desktop Services (kernel component) |
| Vulnerability Class | Elevation of Privilege |
| CVSS | 7.8 |
| Exploited ITW | Yes |
| Patch Date | February 11, 2026 |
Root Cause
A vulnerability in the Remote Desktop Services kernel component allows a local attacker to escalate privileges. The exact root cause has not been publicly detailed beyond Microsoft's advisory.
Exploitation
The attacker reaches SYSTEM through the Remote Desktop Services component.
Exploitation Primitive
RDS kernel component flaw → privilege escalation → SYSTEM