A remote code execution vulnerability exists when the Microsoft Malware Protection Engine does not properly scan a specially crafted file, leading to memory corruption, aka "Microsoft Malware Protection Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability." This affects Windows Defender, Windows Intune Endpoint Protection, Microsoft Security Essentials, Microsoft System Center Endpoint Protection, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft System Center, Microsoft Forefront Endpoint Protection.
CVE-2018-0986
Score elevated to 8.9 because EPSS predicts 63% probability of exploitation within the next 30 days (top 0.9% of all CVEs). NVD baseline CVSS 8.8 retained for reference. Confidence: see factors.
- High exploitation likelihood — EPSS 63%
No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.
- CVSS v3
- 8.8
- EG Score
- 8.9(high)
- EG Risk
- 71(Track)EG Risk 71/100SSVC: Track
EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).
How it’s computedSeverity89% × 45%Exploitation65% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS
- 99.1%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
April 4, 2018
Last Modified
November 21, 2024
References (8)
- secure@microsofthttp://www.securityfocus.com/bid/103593
- secure@microsofthttp://www.securitytracker.com/id/1040631
- secure@microsofthttps://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-0986
- secure@microsofthttps://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/44402/
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/103593
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1040631
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2018-0986
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/44402/
Weakness Classification(1)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
All Vendor Advisories
(1)
Every vendor that published an advisory referencing this CVE — pulled from our cve_vendor_advisories aggregation. Click any row for the vendor's original advisory page.
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 9× in last 7d / 31× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
- 2026-07-23 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 01:31 UTCEG score recompute▲ 0.10
- 2026-07-22 22:11 UTCEG score recompute
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- 2026-05-28 09:36 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-05-28 09:36 UTCVendor advisory
- 2026-05-28 09:36 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-05-27 13:38 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-05-25 18:16 UTCOSV refresh
Publicly available exploits
(1 reference)Working exploit code is in the public domain (1 Exploit-DB entry). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- Exploit-DBEDB-44402✓ verifiedFirst seen Apr 5, 2018
Microsoft Windows Defender - 'mpengine.dll' Memory Corruption
Open source ↗
Related CVEs(same vendor + same CWE)
Same vendor
10 shownmsrc
- CVE-2006-10003EG 9.8CRITICAL
- CVE-2015-20107NVD 7.6EG 9.8EPSS 94%HIGH
- CVE-2013-7381EG 9.8CRITICAL
- CVE-2014-0048EG 9.8EPSS 93%CRITICAL
- CVE-2007-4559EG 9.8EPSS 98%CRITICAL
- CVE-2013-3900NVD 5.5EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 99%MEDIUM
- CVE-2013-2094NVD 8.4EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 99%HIGH
- CVE-2014-9356EG 8.6EPSS 91%HIGH
- CVE-2014-5282EG 8.1HIGH
- CVE-2014-8141EG 7.8EPSS 94%HIGH
Same CWE
10 shownCWE-787
- CVE-2007-0158EG 9.8CRITICAL
- CVE-2007-0899EG 9.8CRITICAL
- CVE-2011-2462EG 9.8 KEVEPSS 100%CRITICAL
- CVE-2010-20115EG 9.3CRITICAL
- CVE-2010-4398NVD 7.8EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 95%HIGH
- CVE-2010-3333NVD 7.8EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 100%HIGH
- CVE-2010-2883NVD 7.3EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 100%HIGH
- CVE-2010-1297NVD 7.8EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 100%HIGH
- CVE-2009-3953NVD 8.8EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 100%HIGH
- CVE-2009-3129NVD 7.8EG 9.0 KEVEPSS 100%HIGH
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2018-0986?
When was CVE-2018-0986 disclosed?
Is CVE-2018-0986 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-0986?
How do I remediate CVE-2018-0986?
Dependency Blast Radius
Explore the affected products and dependency analysis for CVE-2018-0986
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