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CVE-2013-3900

Why is Microsoft republishing a CVE from 2013? We are republishing CVE-2013-3900 in the Security Update Guide to update the Security Updates table and to inform customers that the EnableCertPaddingCheck is available in all currently supported versions of Windows 10 and Windows 11. While the format is different from the original CVE published in 2013, except for clarifications about how to configure the EnableCertPaddingCheck registry value, the information herein remains unchanged from the original text published on December 10, 2013, Microsoft does not plan to enforce the stricter verification behavior as a default functionality on supported releases of Microsoft Windows. This behavior remains available as an opt-in feature via reg key setting, and is available on supported editions of Windows released since December 10, 2013. This includes all currently supported versions of Windows 10 and Windows 11. The supporting code for this reg key was incorporated at the time of release for Windows 10 and Windows 11, so no security update is required; however, the reg key must be set. See the Security Updates table for the list of affected software. Vulnerability Description A remote code execution vulnerability exists in the way that the WinVerifyTrust function handles Windows Authenticode signature verification for portable executable (PE) files. An anonymous attacker could exploit the vulnerability by modifying an existing signed executable file to leverage unverified portions of the file in such a way as to add malicious code to the file without invalidating the signature. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could take complete control of an affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. If a user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could take complete control of an affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights. Exploitation of this vulnerability requires that a user or application run or install a specially crafted, signed PE file. An attacker could modify an... See more at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2013-3900

CVSS
5.5Mediumscored by the publisher (CNA)
Exploited in the wild
Yes, in CISA KEV since 10 Jan 2022CISA deadline for US federal agencies: 10 Jul 2022unvetted proof-of-concept code on github
EPSS
44.6%chance of exploitation in the next 30 daystop 2% of scored CVEsFIRST score of 11 Nov 2026
Fix
Patch availablesee the advisories in the references
Published
11 Dec 2013analysed here 12 Nov 2026

Do first. Apply updates per vendor instructions. (CISA's required action for this KEV entry)

Summary

Triage

Exploitable
At runtime
Attack vector
local
Weakness
Can a WAF block it?
No. See why

The summary, impact and action text on this page are written by our AI analysis pipeline, or taken from the NVD description when a CVE was imported from NVD. They are not the vendor's wording: check them against the sources. A longer AI executive summary and technical analysis are generated for signed-in accounts on the Max plan.

Affected products

Products named in our analysis

  • microsoft:windows_10_1507
  • microsoft:windows_10_1607
  • microsoft:windows_10_1809
  • microsoft:windows_10_1909
  • microsoft:windows_10_20h2
  • microsoft:windows_10_21h1
  • microsoft:windows_10_21h2
  • microsoft:windows_10_22h2
  • microsoft:windows_11_21h2
  • microsoft:windows_11_22h2
  • microsoft:windows_11_23h2
  • microsoft:windows_11_24h2
  • microsoft:windows_7
  • microsoft:windows_8.1
  • microsoft:windows_rt_8.1
  • microsoft:windows_server_2008
  • microsoft:windows_server_2012
  • microsoft:windows_server_2016
  • microsoft:windows_server_2019
  • microsoft:windows_server_2022
  • microsoft:windows_server_2022_23h2
  • microsoft:windows_server_2025

Fix and mitigation

WAF and other mitigations

Can a WAF block it? No. The attack needs local access to the machine, so a WAF is not on its path.

Also consider: patch

Based on the attack vector (local or physical access). We check Cloudflare, AWS, Google Cloud Armor and Azure; for Akamai, Imperva, Fastly, F5, ask your vendor.

Remediation steps (AI-written)

Step-by-step remediation is generated for accounts on the Max plan, for CVEs that match a technology in their stack. Add this technology to your stack to see the fix checklist.

Exploitation evidence

CISA KEV catalog
Listed since 10 Jan 2022.
CISA due date
10 Jul 2022, the remediation deadline for US federal agencies
CISA required action
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Public exploit code
Unvetted proof-of-concept code on GitHub: 15 GitHub proofs of concept
CISA SSVC
exploitation active, automatable no, technical impact partialAssessed by CISA 10 Feb 2025 (SSVC 2.0.3). Exploitation is none, poc (public proof of concept) or active.

Listed so you can judge urgency, not as a recommendation to run anything. GitHub “proofs of concept” are unvetted: some are fake or carry malware. Exploit-DB marks the entries its staff verified.

Timeline

  1. 11 Dec 2013Published
  2. 10 Jan 2022Added to CISA KEV (exploited in the wild)2,952 days (about 8 years) later
  3. 10 Jul 2022CISA remediation due date (US federal agencies)181 days (about 6 months) later
  4. 6 Sept 2022First proof-of-concept repository on GitHub (unvetted)58 days later
  5. 10 Feb 2025CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active889 days (about 2 years) later
  6. 8 Oct 2026CVE record last updated605 days (about 2 years) later
  7. 12 Nov 2026Analysed by vulneraibility.com35 days later

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

MetricValueWhat it means
Attack vectorLocalLocal access required (shell, logged-in user).
Attack complexityLowRepeatable attack, no special conditions.
Privileges requiredNoneThe attacker needs no prior access.
User interactionRequiredA victim must click, open or otherwise cooperate.
ScopeUnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
ConfidentialityNoneNo data disclosure.
IntegrityHighComplete modification possible.
AvailabilityNoneThe service stays up.

Common questions

Is CVE-2013-3900 being exploited?

Yes. CVE-2013-3900 appears in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation in the wild has been confirmed and reported. Treat it as active rather than theoretical, and patch it ahead of higher-scoring vulnerabilities that carry no exploitation evidence.

How severe is CVE-2013-3900?

CVE-2013-3900 is rated Medium with a CVSS score of 5.5. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.

Is there a patch for CVE-2013-3900?

Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2013-3900. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.

What does CVE-2013-3900 affect?

CVE-2013-3900 affects microsoft:windows_10_1507, microsoft:windows_10_1607, microsoft:windows_10_1809, microsoft:windows_10_1909, and 18 further products or versions. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.

Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.

References

NVDCVE.orgCVE DetailsSource

4 references in the CVE record, grouped by the tags the record gives them.

Advisories (2)

Other links (2)

  • blogs.technet.com /b/srd/archive/2013/12/10/ms13-098-update-to-enhance-the-security-of-authenticod
  • cisa.gov /known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2013-3900

Where the data on this page comes from

Summary, impact and triage tags: written by our AI analysis pipeline from the sources above. Check them against the sources.

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