CVE-2026-52884 Notepad++: CVE-2026-48800 Bypass
Attackers can bypass trusted directory checks via path traversal to execute arbitrary code in Notepad++.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2026-52884?
CVE-2026-52884 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in notepad-plus-plus, published on 26 Jun 2026. 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
Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. In v8.9.6.1, isInTrustedDirectory() does NOT canonicalize the path before checking. It uses a prefix-based check (PathIsPrefix() or equivalent) that matches paths starting with trusted directory strings. A path traversal using ..\..\ after a trusted directory prefix passes the check while resolving to an untrusted location. The CVE-2026-48800 patch adds isInTrustedDirectory() validation in Command::run() (RunDlg.cpp) before calling ShellExecute(). This function checks whether the resolved executable path is under a trusted directory. This vulnerability is fixed in 8.9.6.2.
Weakness: CWE-42
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-52884?
It affects 1 product.
Products include Notepad-Plus-Plus Notepad\+\+.
How do I fix CVE-2026-52884?
No fix has been published for CVE-2026-52884 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Upgrade, and resolve every user-supplied path against an allowed base folder before opening it. More about Path traversal.
Is CVE-2026-52884 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-52884 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in notepad-plus-plus
- CVE-2025-15556 Notepad++ Download of Code Without Integrity Check
- CVE-2026-48778 Notepad++: Arbitrary Code Execution via config.xml commandLineInterpreter
- CVE-2026-48800 Notepad++: Arbitrary Code Execution via shortcuts.xml UserCommand Injection
- CVE-2023-47452 Privilege escalation in n/a
- CVE-2023-40031 Notepad++ vulnerable to heap buffer write overflow in Utf8_16_Read::convert
Sources
Also known as GHSA-p58x-r3c9-x9p6.