Skip to content

GHSA-2c7v-qcjp-4mg2 CVE-2022-41089

.NET Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

High NuGet
Severity
8.8 / 10
High · CVSS 3.1
Exploit chance (EPSS)
1.19%
Chance of exploitation in the next 30 days. Higher than 68.04% of scored vulnerabilities.
Known exploited
No
Not in CISA's catalog
Weakness
CWE-94 Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')
Fix
Available
3 packages have a fixed version

Description

Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2022-41089: .NET Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

<a name="executive-summary"></a>Executive summary

Microsoft is releasing this security advisory to provide information about a vulnerability in .NET Core 3.1, .NET 6.0., and .NET 7.0. This advisory also provides guidance on what developers can do to update their applications to remove this vulnerability.

A remote code execution vulnerability exists in .NET Core 3.1, .NET 6.0, and .NET 7.0, where a malicious actor could cause a user to run arbitrary code as a result of parsing maliciously crafted xps files.

Announcement

Announcement for this issue can be found at https://github.com/dotnet/announcements/issues/242

<a name="mitigation-factors"></a>Mitigation factors

Microsoft has not identified any mitigating factors for this vulnerability.

<a name="affected-software"></a>Affected software

  • Any .NET 7.0 WinForms or WPF application running on .NET 7.0.0 or earlier.
  • Any .NET 6.0 WinForms or WPF application running on .NET 6.0.11 or earlier.
  • Any .NET Core 3.1 WinForms or WPF application running on .NET 3.1.31 or earlier.

If the application does not utilize WinForms or WPF, it is not affected by this vulnerability.

Applications targeting Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, and other non-Windows platforms are not affected by this vulnerability.

If your application uses the following package versions, ensure you update to the latest version of .NET.

<a name=".NET Core 3.1"></a>.NET Core 3.1
Package name Affected version Patched version
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x64 >= 3.1.0, <= 3.1.31 3.1.32
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x86 >= 3.1.0, <= 3.1.31 3.1.32
<a name=".NET 6"></a>.NET 6
Package name Affected version Patched version
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64 >= 6.0.0, <= 6.0.11 6.0.12
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x64 >= 6.0.0, <= 6.0.11 6.0.12
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x86 >= 6.0.0, <= 6.0.11 6.0.12
<a name=".NET 7"></a>.NET 7
Package name Affected version Patched version
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64 >= 7.0.0, <= 7.0.0 7.0.1
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x64 >= 7.0.0, <= 7.0.0 7.0.1
Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x86 >= 7.0.0, <= 7.0.0 7.0.1

Advisory FAQ

<a name="how-affected"></a>How do I know if I am affected?

If you have a runtime or SDK with a version listed, or an affected package listed in affected software, you're exposed to the vulnerability.

<a name="how-fix"></a>How do I fix the issue?
  • To fix the issue please install the latest version of .NET 7.0, .NET 6.0 or .NET Core 3.1. If you have installed one or more .NET SDKs through Visual Studio, Visual Studio will prompt you to update Visual Studio, which will also update your .NET SDKs.
  • If you have .NET Core 3.1 or greater installed, you can list the versions you have installed by running the dotnet --info command. You will see output like the following;
  • If you are using one of the affected packages, please update to the patched version listed above.
.NET Core SDK (reflecting any global.json):

 Version:   6.0.300
 Commit:    8473146e7d

Runtime Environment:

 OS Name:     Windows
 OS Version:  10.0.18363
 OS Platform: Windows
 RID:         win10-x64
 Base Path:   C:\Program Files\dotnet\sdk\6.0.300\

Host (useful for support):

  Version: 6.0.5
  Commit:  8473146e7d

.NET Core SDKs installed:

  6.0.300 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\sdk]

.NET Core runtimes installed:

  Microsoft.AspNetCore.App 6.0.5 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.AspNetCore.App]
  Microsoft.NETCore.App 6.0.5 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.NETCore.App]
  Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App 6.0.5 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App]

To install additional .NET Core runtimes or SDKs:
  https://aka.ms/dotnet-download

.NET 7.0, .NET 6.0 and .NET Core 3.1 updates are also available from Microsoft Update. To access this either type "Check for updates" in your Windows search, or open Settings, choose Update & Security and then click Check for Updates.

Once you have installed the updated runtime or SDK, restart your apps for the update to take effect.

Additionally, if you've deployed self-contained applications targeting any of the impacted versions, these applications are also vulnerable and must be recompiled and redeployed.

Other Information

Acknowledgements

Eleftherios Panos with Nettitude Nick Landers with NetSPI

Reporting Security Issues

If you have found a potential security issue in .NET 7.0, .NET 6.0 or .NET Core 3.1, please email details to secure@microsoft.com. Reports may qualify for the Microsoft .NET Core & .NET 5 Bounty. Details of the Microsoft .NET Bounty Program including terms and conditions are at https://aka.ms/corebounty.

Support

You can ask questions about this issue on GitHub in the .NET GitHub organization. The main repos are located at https://github.com/dotnet/runtime and https://github.com/dotnet/wpf/. The Announcements repo (https://github.com/dotnet/Announcements) will contain this bulletin as an issue and will include a link to a discussion issue. You can ask questions in the linked discussion issue.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this advisory is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Microsoft disclaims all warranties, either express or implied, including the warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers be liable for any damages whatsoever including direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, loss of business profits or special damages, even if Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages so the foregoing limitation may not apply.

External Links

CVE-2022-41089

Affected versions

NuGet

How to fix

Move to the fixed version or later with your package manager, update the lockfile, and run your tests. If the package only arrives through another dependency, upgrade that dependency first. If none of its releases pulls a fixed version yet, force the version with your package manager's override.

Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64 NuGet → 6.0.12

dotnet
dotnet add package Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64 --version 6.0.12

Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x64 NuGet → 3.1.32

dotnet
dotnet add package Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x64 --version 3.1.32

Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x86 NuGet → 3.1.32

dotnet
dotnet add package Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-x86 --version 3.1.32

Severity breakdown

CVSS 3.1 8.8

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Weakness

CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')

The product constructs all or part of a code segment using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the syntax or behavior of the intended code segment.

How to prevent it
  • Architecture and Design: Refactor your program so that you do not have to dynamically generate code.
  • Architecture and Design: Run your code in a "jail" or similar sandbox environment that enforces strict boundaries between the process and the operating system. This may effectively restrict which code can be executed by your product. Examples include the Unix chroot jail and AppArmor. In general, managed code may provide some protection. This may not be a feasible solution, and it only limits the impact to the operating system; the rest of your application may still be subject to compromise. Be careful to avoid CWE-243 and other weaknesses related to jails.
  • Implementation: Assume all input is malicious. Use an "accept known good" input validation strategy, i.e., use a list of acceptable inputs that strictly conform to specifications. Reject any input that does not strictly conform to specifications, or transform it into something that does. When performing input validation, consider all potentially relevant properties, including length, type of input, the full range of acceptable values, missing or extra inputs, syntax, consistency across related fields, and conformance to business rules. As an example of business rule logic, "boat" may be syntactically valid because it only contains alphanumeric characters, but it is not valid if the input is only expected to contain colors such as "red" or "blue." Do not rely exclusively on looking for malicious or malformed inputs. This is likely to miss at least one undesirable input, especially if the code's environment changes. This can give attackers enough room to bypass the intended validation. However, denylists can be useful for detecting potential attacks or determining which inputs are so malformed that they should be rejected outright. To reduce the likelihood of code injection, use stringent allowlists that limit which constructs are allowed. If you are dynamically constructing code that invokes a function, then verifying that the input is alphanumeric might be insufficient. An attacker might still be able to reference a dangerous function that you did not intend to allow, such as system(), exec(), or exit().
  • Testing: Use dynamic tools and techniques that interact with the product using large test suites with many diverse inputs, such as fuzz testing (fuzzing), robustness testing, and fault injection. The product's operation may slow down, but it should not become unstable, crash, or generate incorrect results.
  • Operation: Run the code in an environment that performs automatic taint propagation and prevents any command execution that uses tainted variables, such as Perl's "-T" switch. This will force the program to perform validation steps that remove the taint, although you must be careful to correctly validate your inputs so that you do not accidentally mark dangerous inputs as untainted (see CWE-183 and CWE-184).
  • Operation: Run the code in an environment that performs automatic taint propagation and prevents any command execution that uses tainted variables, such as Perl's "-T" switch. This will force the program to perform validation steps that remove the taint, although you must be careful to correctly validate your inputs so that you do not accidentally mark dangerous inputs as untainted (see CWE-183 and CWE-184).
  • Implementation: For Python programs, it is frequently encouraged to use the ast.literal_eval() function instead of eval, since it is intentionally designed to avoid executing code. However, an adversary could still cause excessive memory or stack consumption via deeply nested structures [REF-1372], so the python documentation discourages use of ast.literal_eval() on untrusted data [REF-1373].

References

Timeline

  1. Published
  2. Last updated by the source
  3. Latest EPSS score
AdvisorySeverityWhy it's related
GHSA-g44w-h65v-4cw9
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-96235 - .NET and Visual Studio Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
High Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-fq6x-pvr9-888r
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-96234 - .NET and Visual Studio Information Disclosure Vulnerability
Medium Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-f8qh-mqg4-9939
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-96232 - .NET and Visual Studio Information Disclosure Vulnerability
High Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-5qr9-xxm9-6cmq
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-96229 - .NET and Visual Studio Information Disclosure Vulnerability
Medium Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-xq57-crx4-g373
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-96224 - .NET and Visual Studio Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
High Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-c27m-942f-rcfh
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-87697 - .NET and Visual Studio Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
High Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-f63g-mx39-3r38
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-85363 - .NET and Visual Studio Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
High Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
GHSA-4w5f-7jp2-w48g
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2026-83520 - .NET and Visual Studio Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
High Also affects Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App.Runtime.win-arm64
Is this in your code?

MergeHarbor checks every repository's dependencies against this database, ranks what matters by exploitability and reachability, routes it to the owning team and opens the fix pull request.

Check your repos with MergeHarbor