The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added CVE-2026-96951, a Microsoft Windows Command Injection Vulnerability, to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on October 13, 2026. CISA adds a flaw to the catalog when it has reliable evidence that attackers are exploiting it in the wild.
What CISA says
Microsoft Windows Shell contains a command injection vulnerability that allows an unauthorized attacker to bypass a security feature over a network.
— CISA KEV catalog entry for CVE-2026-96951
Key facts
| CVE | CVE-2026-96951 |
|---|---|
| Vendor / product | Microsoft Windows |
| Added to KEV | October 13, 2026 |
| Federal deadline | October 16, 2026 |
| Known ransomware use | Unknown |
| Weakness (CWE) | CWE-77 |
| CISA forensic triage | Yes |
Who has to act, and by when
US federal civilian executive branch agencies are required to remediate the vulnerability by October 16, 2026. CISA urges all organizations to prioritize KEV-listed flaws as part of their vulnerability management.
CISA’s required action for this entry:
Apply mitigations in accordance with vendor instructions, ensuring compliance with CISA’s BOD 26-04 Prioritizing Security Updates Based on Risk (see URL in Notes) guidance and CISA’s “Forensics Triage Requirements” (see URL in Notes). Follow applicable BOD 26-04 guidance for cloud services or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. Stakeholders are responsible for evaluating each asset's internet exposure and ensuring adherence to BOD 26-04 patching guidelines.
References
- CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog
- NIST NVD — CVE-2026-96951 https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-96951
- msrc.microsoft.com https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/en-US/vulnerability/CVE-2026-96951