Visual Studio JSON Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
Published Oct 16, 2020
7.8
HIGHCVSS 3.1
EPSS 4.62%
Description
<p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio Code when a user is tricked into opening a malicious 'package.json' file. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the context of the current user. If the current user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker could take control of the affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to convince a target to clone a repository and open it in Visual Studio Code. Attacker-specified code would execute when the target opens the malicious 'package.json' file.</p> <p>The update address the vulnerability by modifying the way Visual Studio Code handles JSON files.</p>
Affected products
-
- Version 1.0.0StatusaffectedConstraints<publication
- Version
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | Visual Studio Code | n/a |
|
- n/a
No data.
No Red Hat product state for this CVE.
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
No remediation recorded yet.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
1 other source (CVE.org) ▾
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C
No CVSS v3.0 score for this CVE.
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 1, 2026.
Score over time
2021–2026- EPSS v1
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v1
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (52 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 4.62% (0.04619) | 91.40th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 4.24% (0.04243) | 89.72th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Nov 21, 2025 | 18.01% (0.18013) | 94.89th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Nov 18, 2025 | 9.47% (0.09473) | 92.00th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Sep 6, 2025 | 18.01% (0.18013) | 94.91th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Jul 16, 2025 | 15.30% (0.15298) | 94.29th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Apr 16, 2025 | 9.10% (0.09096) | 92.15th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 30, 2025 | 10.89% (0.10887) | 92.75th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 29, 2025 | 33.13% (0.33127) | 95.16th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 28, 2025 | 8.32% (0.08320) | 91.46th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 5.64% (0.05641) | 89.66th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 1.87% (0.01873) | 88.90th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 30, 2024 | 1.12% (0.01117) | 84.55th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 13, 2024 | 1.12% (0.01123) | 84.52th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 25, 2024 | 1.26% (0.01263) | 85.44th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 7, 2024 | 1.35% (0.01351) | 85.89th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 21, 2024 | 1.12% (0.01117) | 84.24th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 5, 2024 | 1.18% (0.01182) | 84.68th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Feb 19, 2024 | 1.17% (0.01174) | 84.56th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Feb 2, 2024 | 1.33% (0.01331) | 84.65th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jan 18, 2024 | 13.30% (0.13299) | 95.05th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jan 3, 2024 | 7.93% (0.07927) | 93.63th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Dec 18, 2023 | 15.41% (0.15411) | 95.37th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Dec 3, 2023 | 10.07% (0.10070) | 94.32th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Nov 19, 2023 | 27.66% (0.27661) | 96.33th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Nov 3, 2023 | 6.52% (0.06521) | 92.97th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Oct 20, 2023 | 10.35% (0.10351) | 94.32th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Oct 5, 2023 | 4.45% (0.04452) | 91.42th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Sep 22, 2023 | 10.57% (0.10568) | 94.34th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Sep 8, 2023 | 4.06% (0.04062) | 91.02th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Aug 25, 2023 | 5.51% (0.05507) | 92.26th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Aug 12, 2023 | 6.61% (0.06613) | 92.86th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 28, 2023 | 4.08% (0.04080) | 90.94th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 16, 2023 | 15.22% (0.15220) | 95.11th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 2, 2023 | 6.78% (0.06784) | 92.86th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jun 19, 2023 | 3.52% (0.03523) | 90.22th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jun 6, 2023 | 5.46% (0.05463) | 92.03th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 23, 2023 | 3.07% (0.03069) | 89.56th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 11, 2023 | 9.55% (0.09553) | 93.84th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 27, 2023 | 3.02% (0.03022) | 89.43th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 14, 2023 | 2.88% (0.02876) | 89.20th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 31, 2023 | 38.25% (0.38247) | 96.59th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 18, 2023 | 2.31% (0.02309) | 87.99th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 27.53% (0.27533) | 96.06th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.79% (0.01789) | 76.98th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| May 4, 2022 | 1.79% (0.01789) | 75.06th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 1.65% (0.01648) | 73.84th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 22.17% (0.22168) | 94.33th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 3, 2022 | 32.21% (0.32208) | 97.60th | v1 |
| Jan 6, 2022 | 32.21% (0.32208) | 97.57th | v1 |
| Sep 1, 2021 | 9.57% (0.09575) | 94.86th | v1 |
| Apr 14, 2021 | 9.57% (0.09575) | 0.00th | v1 |
No CWE recorded.
References (1)
- https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2020-17023 x_refsource_MISCPatchVendor Advisory
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2020-17023 | x_refsource_MISCPatchVendor Advisory |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.