CVE-2026-78461: Visual Studio Code Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability

Overview

Severity
High (CVSS 7.4)
CVSS Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N/E:U/RL:O/RC:C
Category
Security Feature Bypass
Exploit Status
Not Exploited
Exploitation Likelihood
Less Likely
Patch Tuesday
2026-Sep
Released
2026-09-08
EPSS Score
1.06% (percentile: 62.5%)

Description

Improper limitation of a pathname to a restricted directory ('path traversal') in Visual Studio Code allows an unauthorized attacker to bypass a security feature over a network.

FAQ

What security feature could be bypassed by successfully exploiting this vulnerability? An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could bypass the Visual Studio Code Workspace Trust feature, allowing content from an untrusted workspace to run commands or code without the user first granting trust. See Workspace Trust for more information. What type of information could be disclosed by this vulnerability? The type of information that could be disclosed if an attacker successfully exploited this vulnerability by escaping the sandbox, is the ability to read local files.

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

  • 2026-09-08: Information published.