CVE-2025-26646 — Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core
HIGHCVE-2025-26646 is a high-severity (CVSS 8) CWE-73 vulnerability in Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core. A fix is available for Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core .NET Spoofing Vulnerability
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2025-26646.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2025-26646 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,636 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core.NETMicrosoft.Build.Tasks.Core.NETMicrosoft.Build.Tasks.Core.NETMicrosoft.Build.Tasks.Core.NETMicrosoft.Build.Tasks.Core.NETMicrosoft.Build.Tasks.Core.NETMicrosoft.Build.Tasks.CoreReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects NuGet packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Microsoft Security Advisory CVE-2025-26646: .NET Spoofing Vulnerability
<a name="executive-summary"></a>Executive summary
Microsoft is releasing this security advisory to provide information about a vulnerability in .NET 9.0.xxx and .NET 8.0.xxx SDK. This advisory also provides guidance on what developers can do to update their applications to address this vulnerability.
A vulnerability exists in .NET SDK or MSBuild applications where external control of file name or path allows an unauthorized attacked to perform spoofing over a network.
Announcement
Announcement for this issue can be found at https://github.com/dotnet/announcements/issues/356
<a name="mitigation-factors"></a>Mitigation factors
Projects which do not utilize the DownloadFile build task are not susceptible to this vulnerability.
<a name="affected-software"></a>Affected software
- Any installation of .NET 9.0.105 SDK, .NET 9.0.203 SDK or earlier.
- Any installation of .NET 8.0.115 SDK, .NET 8.0.311 or .NET 8.0.312 SDK, .NET 8.0.408 or .NET 8.0.409 SDK or earlier.
<a name="affected-packages"></a>Affected Packages
The vulnerability affects any Microsoft .NET Core project if it uses any of affected packages versions listed below
| Package name | Affected version | Patched version |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | >= 15.8.166, <=15.9.20<br />>=16.0.461, <= 16.11.0<br />>= 17.0.0, <= 17.8.3<br/>>= 17.9.5, <= 17.10.4<br />17.11.4<br />17.12.6 <br />17.13.9 | 15.9.30<br />16.11.6<br />17.8.29<br/>17.10.29<br />17.12.36<br />17.13.26 <br />17.14.8 |
Advisory FAQ
<a name="how-affected"></a>How do I know if I am affected?
If you have a .NET SDK with a version listed, or an affected package listed in affected software or affected packages, you're exposed to the vulnerability.
<a name="how-fix"></a>How do I fix the issue?
- To fix the issue please install the latest version of .NET 9.0 SDK or .NET 8.0 SDK. If you have installed one or more .NET SDKs through Visual Studio, Visual Studio will prompt you to update Visual Studio, which will also update your .NET SDKs.
- If your application references the vulnerable package, update the package reference to the patched version.
- You can list the versions you have installed by running the
dotnet --infocommand. You will see output like the following;
.NET SDK:
Version: 9.0.100
Commit: 59db016f11
Workload version: 9.0.100-manifests.3068a692
MSBuild version: 17.12.7+5b8665660
Runtime Environment:
OS Name: Mac OS X
OS Version: 15.2
OS Platform: Darwin
RID: osx-arm64
Base Path: /usr/local/share/dotnet/sdk/9.0.100/
.NET workloads installed:
There are no installed workloads to display.
Configured to use loose manifests when installing new manifests.
Host:
Version: 9.0.0
Architecture: arm64
Commit: 9d5a6a9aa4
.NET SDKs installed:
9.0.100 [/usr/local/share/dotnet/sdk]
.NET runtimes installed:
Microsoft.AspNetCore.App 9.0.0 [/usr/local/share/dotnet/shared/Microsoft.AspNetCore.App]
Microsoft.NETCore.App 9.0.0 [/usr/local/share/dotnet/shared/Microsoft.NETCore.App]
Other architectures found:
x64 [/usr/local/share/dotnet]
registered at [/etc/dotnet/install_location_x64]
Environment variables:
Not set
global.json file:
Not found
Learn more:
https://aka.ms/dotnet/info
Download .NET:
https://aka.ms/dotnet/download
-
If you're using .NET 9.0, you should download and install the appropriate SDK:
.NET 9.0.300for Visual Studio 2022 v17.14,.NET 9.0.204for v17.13, or.NET 9.0.106for v17.12. Download from https://dotnet.microsoft.com/download/dotnet-core/9.0. -
If you're using .NET 8.0, you should download and install the appropriate SDK:
.NET 8.0.410for Visual Studio 2022 v17.11,.NET 8.0.313for v17.10, or.NET 8.0.116for v17.8. Download from https://dotnet.microsoft.com/download/dotnet-core/8.0.
Once you have installed the updated SDK, restart your apps for the update to take effect.
Other Information
Reporting Security Issues
If you have found a potential security issue in .NET 8.0 or .NET 9.0, please email details to [email protected]. Reports may qualify for the Microsoft .NET Core & .NET 5 Bounty. Details of the Microsoft .NET Bounty Program including terms and conditions are at https://aka.ms/corebounty.
Support
You can ask questions about this issue on GitHub in the .NET GitHub organization. The main repos are located at https://github.com/dotnet/aspnetcore. The Announcements repo (https://github.com/dotnet/Announcements) will contain this bulletin as an issue and will include a link to a discussion issue. You can ask questions in the linked discussion issue.
Disclaimer
The information provided in this advisory is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Microsoft disclaims all warranties, either express or implied, including the warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers be liable for any damages whatsoever including direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, loss of business profits or special damages, even if Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages so the foregoing limitation may not apply.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| .NETNuGet | Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | ≥ 15.8.166&&< 15.9.30 | 15.9.30dotnet add package Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core --version 15.9.30 |
| .NETNuGet | Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | ≥ 16.0.461&&< 16.11.6 | 16.11.6dotnet add package Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core --version 16.11.6 |
| .NETNuGet | Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | ≥ 17.0.0&&< 17.8.29 | 17.8.29dotnet add package Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core --version 17.8.29 |
| .NETNuGet | Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | ≥ 17.9.5&&< 17.10.29 | 17.10.29dotnet add package Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core --version 17.10.29 |
| .NETNuGet | Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | ≥ 17.11.4&&< 17.12.36 | 17.12.36dotnet add package Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core --version 17.12.36 |
| .NETNuGet | Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core | ≥ 17.12.6&&< 17.13.26 | 17.13.26dotnet add package Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core --version 17.13.26 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update Microsoft.Build.Tasks.Core to 15.9.30 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2025-26646 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2025-26646 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2025-26646. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
This vulnerability in .NET is Important because it allows spoofing of trusted identities or content through crafted input, exploiting weaknesses in validation logic. While it requires user interaction and limited privileges, it can subvert authentication flows or integrity checks, leading to unauthorized actions. In…
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | dotnet8.0-0:8.0.116-1.el10_0 | RHSA-2025:7599 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | dotnet9.0-0:9.0.106-1.el10_0 | RHSA-2025:7601 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | dotnet9.0-0:9.0.106-1.el8_10 | RHSA-2025:7571 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | dotnet8.0-0:8.0.116-1.el8_10 | RHSA-2025:7589 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | dotnet8.0-0:8.0.116-1.el9_6 | RHSA-2025:7598 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | dotnet9.0-0:9.0.106-1.el9_6 | RHSA-2025:7600 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.4 Extended Update Support | dotnet8.0-0:8.0.116-1.el9_4 | RHSA-2025:7603 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | dotnet8-0-main-8.0.126-1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:9080 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2025-26646 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2025-26646 across NuGet dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.