CVE-2023-32057: Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ) Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

CVE-2023-32057 is a remote code execution vulnerability in Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ), rated Critical by Microsoft, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8 (Critical). An attacker can exploit it remotely over the network, without any privileges and without user interaction. Microsoft has not reported exploitation in the wild and rates exploitation as less likely. The EPSS model estimates a 2.21% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 83% of all scored vulnerabilities. Microsoft released the fix on 11 July 2023 in the July 2023 Patch Tuesday, delivered through 15 security updates (KB5028168, KB5028171, KB5028182, KB5028166 and more). It affects 33 products in 2 product families (Windows, ESU).

Key facts

CVE ID: CVE-2023-32057
Severity: Critical CVSS 9.8
Microsoft severity: Critical
Impact: Remote Code Execution
Exploited in the wild: No
Publicly disclosed: No
Exploitation likelihood: Less Likely
Weakness: CWE-20
EPSS: 2.21% (percentile 83%)
CISA KEV: Not listed
Released: 11 July 2023
Last updated: 16 August 2023
Patch Tuesday: July 2023 Patch Tuesday
Product families: Windows, ESU

CVSS score and vector

Microsoft scores CVE-2023-32057 at 9.8 (temporal 8.5) using CVSS 3.1. Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C

Metric	Value
Attack vector	Network
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges required	None
User interaction	None
Scope	Unchanged
Confidentiality impact	High
Integrity impact	High
Availability impact	High
Exploit code maturity	Unproven
Remediation level	Official fix
Report confidence	Confirmed

Frequently asked questions (Microsoft)

How could an attacker exploit the vulnerability?

To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to send a specially crafted malicious MSMQ packet to a MSMQ server. This could result in remote code execution on the server side.

Mitigations and workarounds

Mitigation refers to a setting, common configuration, or general best-practice, existing in a default state, that could reduce the severity of exploitation of a vulnerability. The following mitigating factors might be helpful in your situation:

The Windows message queuing service, which is a Windows component, needs to be enabled for a system to be exploitable by this vulnerability. This feature can be added via the Control Panel.

You can check to see if there is a service running named Message Queuing and TCP port 1801 is listening on the machine.

Affected products (33)

Windows

Product	Security update	Type	Fixed build	Restart
Windows 10 Version 1809 for 32-bit Systems	KB5028168	Security Update	10.0.17763.4645	Yes
Windows 10 Version 1809 for x64-based Systems	KB5028168	Security Update	10.0.17763.4645	Yes
Windows 10 Version 1809 for ARM64-based Systems	KB5028168	Security Update	10.0.17763.4645	Yes
Windows Server 2019	KB5028168	Security Update	10.0.17763.4645	Yes
Windows Server 2019 (Server Core installation)	KB5028168	Security Update	10.0.17763.4645	Yes
Windows Server 2022	KB5028171	Security Update	10.0.20348.1850	Yes
Windows Server 2022 (Server Core installation)	KB5028171	Security Update	10.0.20348.1850	Yes
Windows 11 version 21H2 for x64-based Systems	KB5028182	Security Update	10.0.22000.2176	Yes
Windows 11 version 21H2 for ARM64-based Systems	KB5028182	Security Update	10.0.22000.2176	Yes
Windows 10 Version 21H2 for 32-bit Systems	KB5028166	Security Update	10.0.19044.3208	Yes
Windows 10 Version 21H2 for ARM64-based Systems	KB5028166	Security Update	10.0.19044.3208	Yes
Windows 10 Version 21H2 for x64-based Systems	KB5028166	Security Update	10.0.19044.3208	Yes
Windows 11 Version 22H2 for ARM64-based Systems	KB5028185	Security Update	10.0.22621.1992	Yes
Windows 11 Version 22H2 for x64-based Systems	KB5028185	Security Update	10.0.22621.1992	Yes
Windows 10 Version 22H2 for x64-based Systems
Windows 10 Version 22H2 for ARM64-based Systems
Windows 10 Version 22H2 for 32-bit Systems
Windows 10 for 32-bit Systems	KB5028186	Security Update	10.0.10240.20048	Yes
Windows 10 for x64-based Systems	KB5028186	Security Update	10.0.10240.20048	Yes
Windows 10 Version 1607 for 32-bit Systems	KB5028169	Security Update	10.0.14393.6085	Yes
Windows 10 Version 1607 for x64-based Systems	KB5028169	Security Update	10.0.14393.6085	Yes
Windows Server 2016	KB5028169	Security Update	10.0.14393.6085	Yes
Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation)	KB5028169	Security Update	10.0.14393.6085	Yes

ESU

Product	Security update	Type	Fixed build	Restart
Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2	KB5028222 KB5028226	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.0.6003.22175 6.0.6003.22175	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation)	KB5028222 KB5028226	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.0.6003.22175 6.0.6003.22175	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems Service Pack 2	KB5028222 KB5028226	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.0.6003.22175 6.0.6003.22175	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation)	KB5028222 KB5028226	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.0.6003.22175 6.0.6003.22175	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2008 R2 for x64-based Systems Service Pack 1	KB5028240 KB5028224	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.1.7601.26623 6.1.7601.26623	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2008 R2 for x64-based Systems Service Pack 1 (Server Core installation)	KB5028240 KB5028224	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.1.7601.26623 6.1.7601.26623	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2012	KB5028232 KB5028233	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.2.9200.24374 6.2.9200.24374	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2012 (Server Core installation)	KB5028232 KB5028233	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.2.9200.24374 6.2.9200.24374	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2012 R2	KB5028228 KB5028223	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.3.9600.21063 6.3.9600.21075	Yes Yes
Windows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation)	KB5028228 KB5028223	Monthly Rollup Security Only	6.3.9600.21063 6.3.9600.21075	Yes Yes

Security updates (15)

KB5028168 (Security Update)
KB5028171 (Security Update)
KB5028182 (Security Update)
KB5028166 (Security Update)
KB5028185 (Security Update)
KB5028186 (Security Update)
KB5028169 (Security Update)
KB5028222 (Monthly Rollup)
KB5028226 (Security Only)
KB5028240 (Monthly Rollup)
KB5028224 (Security Only)
KB5028232 (Monthly Rollup)
KB5028233 (Security Only)
KB5028228 (Monthly Rollup)
KB5028223 (Security Only)

NIST NVD data

NVD status: Modified
NVD CVSS: 9.8 (CRITICAL)
NVD weakness: CWE-20
Published to NVD: 11 July 2023
NVD last modified: 17 June 2026

Affected configurations (CPE)

Product	Vulnerable versions
windows 10 1507	before 10.0.10240.20048
windows 10 1607	before 10.0.14393.6085
windows 10 1809	before 10.0.17763.4645
windows 10 21h2	before 10.0.19041.3208
windows 10 22h2	before 10.0.19045.3208
windows 11 21h2	before 10.0.22000.2176
windows 11 22h2	before 10.0.22621.1992
windows server 2008	all listed versions
windows server 2008 r2 (x64)	all listed versions
windows server 2012	all listed versions
windows server 2012 r2	all listed versions
windows server 2016	all listed versions
windows server 2019	all listed versions
windows server 2022	all listed versions

References

https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2023-32057 (Patch, Vendor Advisory)
https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2023-32057 (Patch, Vendor Advisory)

Acknowledgments

Revision history

Version	Date	Description
1.0	11 July 2023	Information published.
1.1	16 August 2023	Acknowledgement added. This is an informational change only.