CVE-2026-121661: Visual Studio Code Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability
CVE-2026-121661 is a security feature bypass vulnerability in Visual Studio Code, rated Important by Microsoft, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 (High). An attacker can exploit it by an attacker with local access, without any privileges and only if a user takes an action. Microsoft has not reported exploitation in the wild and rates exploitation as less likely. Microsoft released the fix on 10 November 2026 in the November 2026 Patch Tuesday. It affects 1 product in 1 product family (Developer Tools).
Key facts
- CVE ID
- CVE-2026-121661
- Severity
- High CVSS 7.8
- Microsoft severity
- Important
- Impact
- Security Feature Bypass
- Exploited in the wild
- No
- Publicly disclosed
- No
- Exploitation likelihood
- Less Likely
- CISA KEV
- Not listed
- Released
- Last updated
- Patch Tuesday
- November 2026 Patch Tuesday
- Product families
- Developer Tools
CVSS score and vector
Microsoft scores CVE-2026-121661 at 7.8 (temporal 6.8) using CVSS 3.1. Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Attack vector | Local |
| Attack complexity | Low |
| Privileges required | None |
| User interaction | Required |
| Scope | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality impact | High |
| Integrity impact | High |
| Availability impact | High |
| Exploit code maturity | Unproven |
| Remediation level | Official fix |
| Report confidence | Confirmed |
Description
Incomplete list of disallowed inputs in Visual Studio Code allows an unauthorized attacker to bypass a security feature locally.
Frequently asked questions (Microsoft)
What security feature could be bypassed by successfully exploiting this vulnerability?
Successful exploitation could allow an untrusted workspace to apply settings that should be blocked by Visual Studio Code's Workspace Trust protections. The user must open the attacker-controlled workspace.
Affected products (1)
Developer Tools
| Product | Security update | Type | Fixed build | Restart |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visual Studio Code | Release Notes | Security Update | 1.145.3 |
Acknowledgments
- novice-22
- Omar Khaleel
- hyeon
- novice-22
- bbznop
- Brahim Chebli with https://brvhim.com/
- Jacob Keith with Keith Systems
- wudr
- dldil
- Jebeen Lee
- Tong Yi Xin
- Mohammad Seet
- Jacob Keith with Keith Systems
- Nguyen Van Minh Duc with Saigon Newport Corporation
- NavSec
- Attila.Cs(zerodaybugs.com) with https://zerodaybugs.com/
- Bill Hsu
- x4sh3s with https://brvhim.com/
- Mohit_Negi with RootxLabs
- Faav
Revision history
| Version | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | Information published. |