{"id":"CVE-2013-3900","published":"2013-12-11T00:55:03Z","modified":"2026-10-07T17:58:36Z","title":"Microsoft WinVerifyTrust function Remote Code Execution","vendor":"Microsoft","product":"WinVerifyTrust function","tier":"core","eol":null,"description":{"text":"Why is Microsoft republishing a CVE from 2013?\nWe 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,\nMicrosoft 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.\nVulnerability Description\nA 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.\nIf 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.\nExploitation 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","provenance":"source","from":"NVD"},"summary":{"text":"The WinVerifyTrust function in Microsoft Windows mishandles Authenticode signature verification for portable executable (PE) files, so a signed executable can carry added code without the signature being invalidated. An anonymous attacker who can supply a modified signed PE file needs a local user or application to run or install it, and the attack requires user interaction; the stricter verification that addresses this is an opt-in registry setting (EnableCertPaddingCheck) that must be enabled manually.","provenance":"ai","model":"claude-haiku-5-5","generatedAt":"2026-10-23T07:12:18Z"},"cvss":{"score":5.5,"severity":"MEDIUM","version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N","provenance":"source","from":"NVD"},"epss":{"score":0.44647,"percentile":0.98765,"date":"2026-10-28","provenance":"source"},"kev":{"dateAdded":"2022-01-10","dueDate":"2022-07-10","ransomware":false,"requiredAction":"Apply updates per vendor instructions.","notes":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2013-3900","provenance":"source"},"vulncheckKev":{"dateAdded":"2014-07-29","exploitedFirstSeen":"2014-07-29","ransomware":true,"evidence":[{"url":"https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2013/ms13-098","date":"2014-07-29"},{"url":"https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/feeds/known_exploited_vulnerabilities.json","date":"2022-01-10"},{"url":"https://api.msrc.microsoft.com/cvrf/v3.0/cvrf/2022-Jan","date":"2022-01-21"},{"url":"https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/cybersecurity/cyber-threat-intelligence/cyber-year-in-retrospect/yir-cyber-threats-annex-download.pdf","date":"2022-04-26"},{"url":"https://blogs.vmware.com/security/2022/11/batloader-the-evasive-downloader-malware.html","date":"2022-11-14"},{"url":"https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/b/invitation-to-secret-event-uncovering-earth-yako-campaigns.html","date":"2023-02-16"},{"url":"https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/cryptocurrency-companies-backdoored-in-3cx-supply-chain-attack/","date":"2023-04-03"},{"url":"https://www.mandiant.com/resources/blog/3cx-software-supply-chain-compromise","date":"2023-04-20"},{"url":"https://redalert.nshc.net/2024/05/22/2023-activities-summary-of-sectora-groups-eng/","date":"2024-05-22"},{"url":"https://www.cybereason.com/blog/cuckoo-spear-analyzing-noopdoor","date":"2024-09-13"}],"evidenceTotal":12,"provenance":"source"},"exploited":true,"otx":{"pulseCount":50,"pulses":[{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev 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2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad62f63c24a405a3423cc13","created":"2026-10-19"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 19, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad4dda174e5797d0bd238b7","created":"2026-10-18"},{"name":"Actively_Exploited_Kev | Oct 18, 2026","url":"https://otx.alienvault.com/pulse/6ad38c22e1848f8189d1c121","created":"2026-10-17"}],"provenance":"machine"},"cwes":[{"id":"CWE-347","name":"Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature"},{"id":"CWE-20","name":"Improper Input Validation"}],"references":[{"url":"https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2013-3900","tags":["Patch","Vendor Advisory"]},{"url":"http://blogs.technet.com/b/srd/archive/2013/12/10/ms13-098-update-to-enhance-the-security-of-authenticode.aspx","tags":["Broken Link"]},{"url":"https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2013/ms13-098","tags":["Vendor Advisory"]},{"url":"https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2013-3900","tags":["Patch","Vendor Advisory"]},{"url":"https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2013-3900","tags":["US Government Resource"]}],"techniques":[{"id":"T1190","name":"Exploit Public-Facing Application","tactics":["initial-access"],"provenance":"source","basis":"ctid-cve","bases":["ctid-cve"],"basisDetail":"CTID attack_to_cve (Phase 1)","mappingType":"uncategorized","evidence":[],"confidence":"low","confidenceNote":"needs user interaction; not a public-facing exploit"},{"id":"T1539","name":"Steal Web Session Cookie","tactics":["credential-access"],"provenance":"source","basis":"ctid-cve","bases":["ctid-cve"],"basisDetail":"CTID attack_to_cve (Phase 1)","mappingType":"uncategorized","evidence":[],"confidence":"low","confidenceNote":"CTID attack_to_cve Phase 1 \"Uncategorized\" mapping (not staged by impact)"},{"id":"T1204.002","name":"Malicious File","tactics":["execution"],"provenance":"ai","basis":"ai-mapping","bases":["ai-mapping"],"basisDetail":"claude-haiku-5-5: User runs malicious signed executable","mappingType":"exploitation_technique","evidence":[{"from":"description","quote":"Exploitation of this vulnerability requires that a user or application run or install a specially crafted, signed PE file","start":2259,"end":2380}],"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","confidence":"medium","confidenceNote":"AI-mapped from the description (quote-validated, not expert-reviewed)"},{"id":"T1553.002","name":"Code Signing","tactics":["defense-impairment"],"provenance":"ai","basis":"ai-mapping","bases":["ai-mapping"],"basisDetail":"claude-haiku-5-5: Tampering with signed binaries bypasses signature validation","mappingType":"primary_impact","evidence":[{"from":"description","quote":"modifying an existing signed executable file to leverage unverified portions of the file","start":1420,"end":1508}],"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","confidence":"medium","confidenceNote":"AI-mapped from the description (quote-validated, not expert-reviewed)"}],"reports":[{"id":"SRC-d849a763c1dde7c77634","title":"Spot the Difference: Earth Kasha's New LODEINFO Campaign And The Correlation Analysis With The APT10 Umbrella","publisher":"trendmicro.com","url":"https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/24/k/lodeinfo-campaign-of-earth-kasha.html","date":"2024-11-19","mentions":[{"quote":"The encrypted payload is embedded in the legitimate digital signature by abusing MS13-098/CVE-2013-3900.","start":8266,"end":8370}]}],"affected":[],"advisories":[],"euvd":{"id":"EUVD-2013-3832","url":"https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/EUVD-2013-3832","exploited":true,"exploitedSince":"2022-01-10","provenance":"source"},"exploits":[],"exploitSources":{"pocGithub":{"count":11,"skipped":4,"earliest":"2022-09-06","earliestUrl":"https://github.com/snoopopsec/vulnerability-CVE-2013-3900","repos":[{"name":"norvethil/CVE-2013-3900-PowerShell-PoC","url":"https://github.com/norvethil/CVE-2013-3900-PowerShell-PoC","stars":5,"created":"2025-08-18"},{"name":"CyberCondor/Fix-WinVerifyTrustSignatureValidationVuln","url":"https://github.com/CyberCondor/Fix-WinVerifyTrustSignatureValidationVuln","stars":3,"created":"2023-07-03"},{"name":"OtisSymbos/CVE-2013-3900-WinTrustVerify","url":"https://github.com/OtisSymbos/CVE-2013-3900-WinTrustVerify","stars":1,"created":"2024-09-11"},{"name":"pkblanks/Remediating-CVE-2013-3900-EnableCertPaddingCheck-","url":"https://github.com/pkblanks/Remediating-CVE-2013-3900-EnableCertPaddingCheck-","stars":1,"created":"2025-07-12"},{"name":"snoopopsec/vulnerability-CVE-2013-3900","url":"https://github.com/snoopopsec/vulnerability-CVE-2013-3900","stars":0,"created":"2022-09-06"}]},"first":{"date":"2022-09-06","source":"PoC-in-GitHub","url":"https://github.com/snoopopsec/vulnerability-CVE-2013-3900"},"provenance":"source"},"exploitRefs":[],"flow":[{"stage":"exploitation","techniques":["T1204.002"],"provenance":"ai"},{"stage":"primary","techniques":["T1553.002"],"provenance":"ai"},{"stage":"related","techniques":["T1190","T1539"],"provenance":"source","lowConfidence":true}],"timeline":[{"date":"2013-12-11","kind":"published","label":"Published 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