# CVE-2026-97381: Legacy Update ActiveX control accepts unauthorized hosting origins

> Attackers can bypass origin checks in the ActiveX control to read system info, install updates, or restart the computer via malicious webpages.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.9 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 13 Oct 2026
- **Updated:** 17 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-f4g7-4gmx-jfgf

## What is CVE-2026-97381?

CVE-2026-97381 is a critical vulnerability in LegacyUpdate, published on 13 Oct 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Legacy Update is a tool for activating and installing updates on legacy Windows PCs. Legacy Update 1.12.0 through 1.13.1 contains an origin validation error in the IsPermitted method of its ActiveX control. After successfully reading the hosting document's hostname, a hostname that is not on the permitted list falls through without setting E_ACCESSDENIED, causing IsPermitted to return S_OK. An attacker who induces a user to visit a malicious webpage in Internet Explorer can invoke the control to enumerate update and system information, install updates without consent, display dialogs, or restart the computer when a reboot is pending. This issue was fixed in Legacy Update 1.13.2.

Weakness: CWE-393 (Return of Wrong Status Code), CWE-346 (Origin Validation Error)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-97381?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-97381?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-97381 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-97381 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-97381 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-97381 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-97381 is a critical vulnerability in LegacyUpdate, published on 13 Oct 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-97381 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: LegacyUpdate. 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-2026-97381/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-97381/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-97381
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-97381
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-97381

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-97381/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.