CVE-2026-70335: GitHub Copilot and Visual Studio Code Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability

Overview

Severity
High (CVSS 7.8)
CVSS 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
Category
Elevation of Privilege
Exploit Status
Not Exploited
Exploitation Likelihood
More Likely
Patch Tuesday
2026-Aug
Released
2026-08-11

Description

Improper neutralization of special elements used in an os command ('os command injection') in GitHub Copilot and Visual Studio Code allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

FAQ

How could an attacker exploit this vulnerability? An attacker could embed malicious instructions in content that the AI agent processes, such as a web page, a repository file, or a tool response. When a user runs the agent against that content, the injected instructions could cause the agent to run commands on the user's machine without prompting for confirmation. Successful exploitation could allow the attacker to execute code in the context of the signed-in user. User interaction is required and the attack is carried out locally; no authentication is required for the attacker to supply the content.

Affected Products (1)

Developer Tools

  • Visual Studio Code

Security Updates (1)

Acknowledgments

<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarek-nakkouch/">Tarek Nakkouch</a>

Revision History

  • 2026-08-11: Information published.