Privilege Escalation in Notepad++ Installer Affects Multiple Users

CVE-2025-49144

What is CVE-2025-49144?

A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the Notepad++ installer versions up to 8.8.1, allowing unprivileged users to elevate their privileges to SYSTEM level through insecure executable search paths. An attacker may exploit this by using social engineering or clickjacking to trick users into downloading the legitimate Notepad++ installer alongside a malicious executable to a susceptible directory, such as the Downloads folder. When the installer is executed, it inadvertently runs the malicious file with elevated privileges, posing a significant security risk. The issue has been addressed and will be resolved in the upcoming Notepad++ version 8.8.2.

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