HIGH · 7.8

CVE-2020-16856

<p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio when it improperly handles objects in memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the ...

Vulnerability Description

<p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio when it improperly handles objects in memory. 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. 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.</p> <p>To exploit the vulnerability, an attacker would have to convince a user to open a specially crafted file with an affected version of Visual Studio.</p> <p>The update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how Visual Studio handles objects in memory.</p>

CVSS Score

7.8

HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector
LOCAL
Attack Complexity
LOW
Privileges Required
NONE
User Interaction
REQUIRED
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
HIGH

Affected Products

VendorProductVersions
MicrosoftVisual Studio2012
MicrosoftVisual Studio 2017>= 15.0, <= 15.8
MicrosoftVisual Studio 2019>= 16.0, <= 16.3

References

FAQ

What is CVE-2020-16856?

CVE-2020-16856 is a vulnerability with a CVSS score of 7.8 (HIGH). <p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio when it improperly handles objects in memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the ...

How severe is CVE-2020-16856?

CVE-2020-16856 has been rated HIGH with a CVSS base score of 7.8/10. Review the CVSS metrics above for detailed severity breakdown.

Is there a patch for CVE-2020-16856?

Check the references section above for vendor advisories and patch information. Affected products include: Microsoft Visual Studio, Microsoft Visual Studio 2017, Microsoft Visual Studio 2019.