Improper access control in Visual Studio - CVE-2025-55240
Published: October 15, 2025
Vulnerability identifier: #VU117232
CSH Severity: Low
CVSS v4: 7 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N]
CVE-ID: CVE-2025-55240
CWE-ID: CWE-284
Exploitation vector: Local access
Exploit availability:
No public exploit available
Vulnerability details
The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges on the system.
The vulnerability exists due to improper access restrictions. A local user can place a malicious file on the path to the project directory and then wait for a user with admin privileges to create a Visual Studio project to gain elevated privileges.
Affected software
Visual Studio
How to mitigate CVE-2025-55240
Install updates from vendor's website.
Visual Studio - addressed in versions 15.9.77 15.9.77, 16.11.52 16.11.52, 17.10.20 17.10.20, 17.12.13 17.12.13