<p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio Code when a user is tricked into opening a malicious 'package.json' file. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the context of the current user. If the current user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker could take control of the affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights.</p>
<p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to convince a target to clone a repository and open it in Visual Studio Code. Attacker-specified code would execute when the target opens the malicious 'package.json' file.</p>
<p>The update address the vulnerability by modifying the way Visual Studio Code handles JSON files.</p>
<p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to convince a target to clone a repository and open it in Visual Studio Code. Attacker-specified code would execute when the target opens the malicious 'package.json' file.</p>
<p>The update address the vulnerability by modifying the way Visual Studio Code handles JSON files.</p>
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | Visual Studio Code | affected |
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Advisories
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Fixes
Solution
No solution given by the vendor.
Workaround
No workaround given by the vendor.
References
History
Mon, 23 Feb 2026 18:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | <p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio Code when a user is tricked into opening a malicious 'package.json' file. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the context of the current user. If the current user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker could take control of the affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to convince a target to clone a repository and open it in Visual Studio Code. Attacker-specified code would execute when the target opens the malicious 'package.json' file.</p> <p>The update address the vulnerability by modifying the way Visual Studio Code handles JSON files.</p> | <p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio Code when a user is tricked into opening a malicious 'package.json' file. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the context of the current user. If the current user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker could take control of the affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to convince a target to clone a repository and open it in Visual Studio Code. Attacker-specified code would execute when the target opens the malicious 'package.json' file.</p> <p>The update address the vulnerability by modifying the way Visual Studio Code handles JSON files.</p> |
Projects
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MITRE
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: microsoft
Published:
Updated: 2024-08-04T13:45:34.515Z
Reserved: 2020-08-04T00:00:00.000Z
Link: CVE-2020-16881
Vulnrichment
No data.
NVD
Status : Modified
Published: 2020-09-11T17:15:17.683
Modified: 2026-02-23T18:21:15.257
Link: CVE-2020-16881
Redhat
No data.
OpenCVE Enrichment
No data.
Weaknesses