# CVE-2025-48443: Path traversal in Trend Micro Password Manager

> A local attacker can delete files with administrator privileges during installation due to a link following vulnerability in Trend Micro Password Manager.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.7 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 17 Jun 2025
- **Updated:** 18 Jun 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-c8jv-wc89-vqf7

## What is CVE-2025-48443?

CVE-2025-48443 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Trend Micro Password Manager, published on 17 Jun 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Trend Micro Password Manager (Consumer) version 5.0.0.1266 and below is vulnerable to a Link Following Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability that could allow a local attacker to leverage this vulnerability to delete files in the context of an administrator when the administrator installs Trend Micro Password Manager.

Weakness: CWE-64 (Windows Shortcut Following (.LNK))

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-48443?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Trendmicro Password Manager.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-48443?

No fix has been published for CVE-2025-48443 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2025-48443 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-48443 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Trend Micro Password Manager

- [CVE-2016-3987](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-3987/): Command injection in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-32462](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-32462/): Privilege escalation in Trend Micro Password Manager (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2025-52837](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-52837/): Privilege escalation in Trend Micro Password Manager (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2022-28394](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-28394/): Other in Trend Micro Password Manager (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2022-30523](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-30523/): Privilege escalation in Trend Micro Password Manager (high 7.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-48443 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-48443 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Trend Micro Password Manager, published on 17 Jun 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-48443 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Trend Micro Password Manager. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-48443/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-48443/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-48443
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-48443
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-48443

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-48443/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.