NovumOS: Improper Privilege Management
CVE-2026-40572 is a critical-severity improper privilege management vulnerability in NovumOS from MinecAnton209, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.0 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. Affected NovumOS versions: < 0.24. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.21% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
Critical severity: a successful attack would have severe impact.
What to do
- Check which version of NovumOS you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
- Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| MinecAnton209 | NovumOS | < 0.24 | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- NoneNo account or login is needed.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N. Scored by CNA (github.com).
Official description
NovumOS is a custom 32-bit operating system written in Zig and x86 Assembly. In versions prior to 0.24, Syscall 15 (MemoryMapRange) allows Ring 3 user-mode processes to map arbitrary virtual address ranges into their address space without validating against forbidden regions, including critical kernel structures such as the IDT, GDT, TSS, and page tables. A local attacker can exploit this to modify kernel interrupt handlers, resulting in privilege escalation from user mode to kernel context. This issue has been fixed in version 0.24.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Improper Privilege Management
The product does not properly assign, modify, track, or check privileges for an actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Very carefully manage the setting, management, and handling of privileges. Explicitly manage trust zones in the software.
- Follow the principle of least privilege when assigning access rights to entities in a software system.
- Consider following the principle of separation of privilege. Require multiple conditions to be met before permitting access to a system resource.
More Improper Privilege Management vulnerabilities (CWE-269)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: poc, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
- github.com/MinecAnton209/NovumOS/releases/tag/v0.24Release Notes
Other vulnerabilities in NovumOS
- 8.6 High severity
- 9.3 Critical severity
Recent Improper Privilege Management vulnerabilities
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 7.3 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
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