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Vulnerabilities/CVE-2018-8581Public Intelligence Dossier
Source: microsoft · Limited verification•Last verified: •Collection Degraded
CVE-2018-8581ListedHIGH (raw)CVSS 7.4NVD-CWE-noinfo

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Microsoft Exchange Server, aka "Microsoft Exchange Server Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Microsoft Exchange Server.

Published: 14 Nov 2018•Last updated: 17 Jun 2026, 07:35 AM IST•Source identifier: secure@microsoft.com
Dossier completeness: source-provided sections 3 / 3 · rule guidance available. Missing source facts count as incomplete.
Official source
CISA KEV catalog
Listed
Added03 Mar 2022
Due17 Mar 2022
RansomwareKnown
CVSS score
7.4HIGH (raw)
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Metric sourcenvd@nist.gov
EPSS probability
27.6%0.276
Percentile98th
Weakness type
NVD-CWE-noinfo
No further CWE recorded
Remediation
Patch status unknown
No fixed version or KB recorded

Why It Matters

Analysis dossier

Why It Matters

An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Microsoft Exchange Server, aka "Microsoft Exchange Server Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability." This affects Microsoft Exchange Server.

SOC priority

Immediate Attention

Actively exploited (source statement)

Yes

Publicly disclosed

Unknown

Risk basis: CISA KEV exploitation signal; Microsoft or Microsoft-managed product relevance; HIGH severity; Source-confirmed exploitation or CISA KEV/ransomware metadata

Affected Products & Remediation

1 source-backed product
Affected products and versions (source)
  • microsoft exchange server · 2010; 2013; 2016; 2019 · NVD CPE · Source
Recorded patch / KBNot provided by source

Vendor or catalog guidance (source)

  • CISA KEV: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Known exploitation (source facts)

Only what a source states. Unknown means no source has said either way; it is not "not exploited".

CISA KEV
Listed
Exploited (source statement)
Yes
Publicly disclosed (source)
Unknown

CISA required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Suggested hunting (rule-based inference)

SecOps Signal recommendation (rule-based inference). These steps are hunting hypotheses from the vulnerability class; they do not state or imply that exploitation occurred here or anywhere.

Matched kev-network-exposure (CVSS AV:N, CISA KEV Listed); microsoft-enterprise (Affected product: microsoft exchange server, Vendor: microsoft)

Exposure

  1. Identify assets with the exact CVE and confirm the affected product/version against the advisory.Telemetry: DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities · KEV listing raises urgency, but inventory is needed to establish local exposure. · Rule kev-network-exposure
  2. Identify affected Microsoft products and compare local builds with the MSRC advisory.Telemetry: DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities · The MSRC product/build mapping establishes applicability. · Rule microsoft-enterprise

Exploitation evidence

  1. Review relevant edge or application access logs for unusual requests around the advisory window.Telemetry: CommonSecurityLog · Log review is a hunting hypothesis; KEV listing alone does not show local exploitation. · Rule kev-network-exposure
Show more (2)

Exploitation evidence

  1. Review the advisory's documented behavior on matching hosts before selecting a hunt.Telemetry: DeviceProcessEvents · Product family alone does not justify a CVE-specific detection. · Rule microsoft-enterprise

Response

  1. Recheck the affected assets after the source-stated mitigation or update is applied.Telemetry: DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities · A follow-up inventory check verifies local remediation. · Rule kev-network-exposure

CISA KEV Record

Catalog entry
03 Mar 2022
Required action due
17 Mar 2022
Known ransomware use
Known

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Change History & Source Data

— No recorded material change

CNA / source
secure@microsoft.com
Record status · verification
UPDATED · Microsoft primary source linked; CISA KEV confirmed
CPE
cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2010:-:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2013:-:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2016:-:*:*:*:*:*:*, cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:exchange_server:2019:-:*:*:*:*:*:*

Evidence & Provenance

4 public sources
CISA KEV CatalogAdded 2022-03-03portal.msrc.microsoft.comSource recordnvd.nist.govSource recordcisa.govSource record

Linked by the query's stored exact CVE association. Review required tables and validation status before use.

Detection Hunting Query
Target: DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities•Defender XDR
Detect endpoints exposed to CVE-2018-8581
Purpose: Exposure assessment (Category: Exposure Check)Why linked: Query metadata names CVE-2018-8581
DeviceTvmSoftwareVulnerabilities| where CveId == "CVE-2018-8581"| project DeviceId, DeviceName, OSPlatform, OSVersion, SoftwareVendor, SoftwareName, SoftwareVersion, CveId, VulnerabilitySeverityLevel, RecommendedSecurityUpdate, RecommendedSecurityUpdateId| sort by VulnerabilitySeverityLevel desc
Schema Checked · Not runtime validatedSource: SecOps Signal deterministic template · Limited verificationStatic screening: Passed structure and schema checks; tenant execution is not verified.
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Correlated briefings

SecOps Signal surfaces public advisory facts only. A missing value means the source has not published it, not that your environment is unaffected. No tenant inventory is connected.