Vulnerability Analysis
Notepad++: Arbitrary Code Execution via shortcuts.xml UserCommand Injection
CVE-2026-48800
Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. Prior to 8.9.6.1, the <Command> tag text content inside <UserDefinedCommands> in shortcuts.xml is read by NppXml::value(aNode) (Parameters.cpp:3658) in the feedUserCmds() function and stored in UserCommand._cmd without any validation. When the user clicks the corresponding entry in the Run menu, NppCommands.cpp:4264 creates a Command object with string2wstring(ucmd.getCmd()) and calls run(), which invokes ShellExecute (RunDlg.cpp:221) with the attacker-controlled string as the executable path. The injected command appears as a normal menu item in the Run menu, making it a viable persistence mechanism. This vulnerability is fixed in 8.9.6.1.
No Active Exploit Signals
CVSS Base Score
7.8
HIGH
Exploitability:1.9
Impact Score:5.9
Temporal Score:-
EPSS:0.38%
Threat Intelligence Signals
CISA KEV
No
KEV Date Added
—
Ransomware Use
—
KEV Due Date
—
VulnCheck In-the-Wild
No
Nuclei Template
No
EPSS Score
0.375%
EPSS Percentile
29.4th pct
GHSA ID
—
GitHub Severity
—
SSVC Exploitation
—
SSVC Automatable
—
Vulnerability Class
—
Identity & Timeline
| Status | - |
| Assigning Authority | - |
| CVSS Version / Source | - |
| Reserved | - |
| Published | - |
| Patch Date (date_public) | - |
| Exploit DB Date | - |
| First GitHub PoC Date | - |
| Last Updated | - |
| Time to Patch (Days to fix) | - |
| Exploit Release Gap | - |
| PoC Release Gap | - |
| Exploit DB References | None identified |
Affected Products & Versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected Versions |
|---|---|---|
| No affected products specified. | ||
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