Bug Hunter Releases Microsoft Defender Zero-Day Amid Ongoing Dispute
A security researcher, known as Nightmare Eclipse, has disclosed a new zero-day vulnerability affecting Microsoft Defender on fully patched Windows 10 and 11 systems. The flaw allows local privilege escalation to SYSTEM-level control. This disclosure follows a dispute with Microsoft over unaddressed vulnerability reports and communication issues, with the researcher citing past grievances.
Key points
- Security researcher Nightmare Eclipse has released a zero-day vulnerability targeting Microsoft Defender.
- The vulnerability, named RoguePlanet, affects fully patched Windows 10 and 11 systems.
- It allows local privilege escalation to SYSTEM-level control if a race condition is exploited.
- Nightmare Eclipse claims Microsoft has ignored vulnerability reports and refused communication, citing past issues.
- Proof-of-concept exploit code for the security flaw has also been released by the researcher.
A security researcher operating under the alias Nightmare Eclipse has publicly disclosed a zero-day vulnerability impacting Microsoft Defender. The flaw, reportedly named RoguePlanet, affects systems running Windows 10 and Windows 11, even when fully patched.
According to the researcher, the vulnerability enables local privilege escalation, potentially granting an attacker SYSTEM-level control over an affected machine if a specific race condition is exploited. Proof-of-concept exploit code has been released alongside the vulnerability details. Nightmare Eclipse claims this action stems from ongoing disputes with Microsoft, citing alleged ignored vulnerability reports and communication failures.
This disclosure occurs shortly after Microsoft's June Patch Tuesday, which included a large number of security fixes. The researcher has expressed significant grievances regarding past interactions with the company, suggesting a history of unresolved issues that led to this public release of an unpatched exploit.
Sources
The WireByte editorial team synthesises technology news from multiple primary sources, verifies the facts, and links every source. Articles are produced with AI assistance and reviewed under our editorial policy.