CVE-2026-5525 | Stack-Based Buffer Overflow in Notepad++ File Drop Handler leads to DoS

Exp

A stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in Notepad++ version 8.9.3 in the file drop handler component. When a user drags and drops a directory path of exactly 259 characters without a trailing backslash, the application appends a backslash and null terminator without proper bounds checking, resulting in a stack buffer overflow and application crash (STATUS_STACK_BUFFER_OVERRUN).

Published: 2026-04-10 Last update: 2026-06-05 Assigner: 33c584b5-0579-4c06-b2a0-8d8329fcab9c Source: 33c584b5-0579-4c06-b2a0-8d8329fcab9c
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2026-5525 is rated Exploit Available (50/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.01%). 1 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2026-5525

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2026-5525

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-04-10 — 0.01% —

Full EPSS history (1 record total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-5525

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.0 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:R)
A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 0.8 5.2 33c584b5-0579-4c06-b2a0-8d8329fcab9c
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:R)
A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-5525

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-5525

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
notepad-plus-plus notepad\+\+ 8.9.3 cpe:2.3:a:notepad-plus-plus:notepad\+\+:8.9.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-5525

cvelogic Threat Intelligence