CVE-2019-1188 HIGH

CVE-2019-1188: LNK Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Vendor Microsoft
Product Windows 10 Version 1803
Published August 14, 2019
Last update August 4, 2024

CVSS base score

7.5/10
Attack vector Network
Attack complexity High
Privileges required None
User interaction Required
Confidentiality High
Integrity High

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C

What the vulnerability does

01Description

A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Microsoft Windows that could allow remote code execution if a .LNK file is processed. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could gain the same user rights as the local user. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights. The attacker could present to the user a removable drive, or remote share, that contains a malicious .LNK file and an associated malicious binary. When the user opens this drive(or remote share) in Windows Explorer, or any other application that parses the .LNK file, the malicious binary will execute code of the attacker’s choice, on the target system. The security update addresses the vulnerability by correcting the processing of shortcut LNK references.

Key dates

02Disclosure timeline

August 14, 2019 CVE published
August 4, 2024 Record updated