Summary
Impact: Security Feature Bypass. Microsoft rating: Important. Not known to be exploited — Exploitation More Likely. Customer action: Required.
Details
What kind of security feature could be bypassed by successfully exploiting this vulnerability?
This vulnerability could allow an attacker to bypass SmartScreen protections that rely on the Mark of the Web (MotW) to identify files originating from the internet.
How could an attacker exploit this vulnerability?
An attacker could exploit this issue by convincing a user to open a specially crafted .lnk file delivered through email, a website download, or removable media. When opened, the shortcut causes Windows to launch commands or Control Panel applets without proper MotW handling, potentially allowing arbitrary command execution or loading attacker‑controlled DLLs.
According to the CVSS metric, user interaction is required (UI:R). What interaction would the user have to do?
To successfully exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must convince a user to open a malicious link or shortcut file.
Security updates
10.0.17763.8644 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082123
10.0.20348.5020 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082142
10.0.19044.7184 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082200
10.0.26100.32690 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082063
10.0.26200.8246 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5083769
10.0.22631.6936 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082052
10.0.25398.2274 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082060
10.0.14393.9060 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082198
6.2.9200.26026 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082127
6.3.9600.23132 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5082126
10.0.28000.1836 — https://support.microsoft.com/help/5083768
Vulnerabilities 1
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High 8.8
Windows Shell Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability
Improper neutralization of special elements used in a command ('command injection') in Windows Shell allows an unauthorized attacker to bypass a security feature over a network.
Revision history
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#1
Information published.
References
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CVE-2026-32225 Windows Shell Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability - HTML
https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-32225
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Microsoft Exploitability Index
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/msrc/exploitability-index?rtc=1
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Microsoft Support Lifecycle
https://support.microsoft.com/lifecycle
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Common Vulnerability Scoring System
https://www.first.org/cvss