CVE-2023-21567

Service interruption via improper link resolution

Published Feb 14, 2023 · Updated Aug 19, 2026

Improper link resolution in Microsoft Visual Studio 2017, 2019, and 2022 allows local users to interrupt the IDE through crafted file-system links. Microsoft identifies link following before file access as the weakness but has not published the affected component, file operation, or link type. Exploitation requires local low-privileged access and user interaction, and the documented consequence is an interruption of Visual Studio.

CVSS severity5.6
Medium
EPSS probability0.80%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Improper link resolution in Microsoft Visual Studio 2017, 2019, and 2022 allows local users to interrupt the IDE through crafted file-system links. Microsoft identifies link following before file access as the weakness but has not published the affected component, file operation, or link type. Exploitation requires local low-privileged access and user interaction, and the documented consequence is an interruption of Visual Studio.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-21567
Published
Feb 14, 2023
Updated
Aug 19, 2026
Vendor
Microsoft
Product
Microsoft Visual Studio 2019
Classifications
CWE-59, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Feb 14, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 19, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=16.11.0 <16.11.24

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Microsoft · Microsoft Visual Studio 2019version=16.11.0 <16.11.24
Microsoft · Microsoft Visual Studio 2022 version 17.4version=17.4.0 <17.4.5
Microsoft · Microsoft Visual Studio 2022 version 17.0version=17.0.0 <17.0.19
Microsoft · Microsoft Visual Studio 2022 version 17.2version=17.2.0 <17.2.13
Microsoft · Microsoft Visual Studio 2017version=15.9.0 <15.9.52

Published CVSS scores

5.6Microsoft CorporationCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-59Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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