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Threats / Notepad++ / CVE-2025-15556
CVE-2025-15556 · EUVD no mirror located · GCVE no mirror located Verified 2026-06-22

Notepad++ vulnerability

Notepad++ WinGUp updater downloads code without integrity verification, allowing attackers to intercept updates and execute arbitrary code with user privileges.

Verdict

Today item — known-exploited.

An attacker positioned to intercept or redirect update traffic can deliver malicious installers during Notepad++ updates, achieving arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability stems from missing cryptographic integrity checks on downloaded update packages.

CISA KEV Yes · 2026-02-123EPSS 0.01268 (verify live)4
01

Is it exploitable?

— the evidence, ranked above the score
Reported exploitation
6 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2026-02-12).
CISA KEV ↗Confirmed
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.01268 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Notepad++, Notepad++. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
NVD ↗Reported
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-494 Download Without Integrity Check — weakness family: Path traversal / file.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
NVD ↗Reported
WeaknessCWE-494 · Download Without Integrity CheckPath traversal / file
02

Who’s exploiting it?

— attribution turns risk into urgency
Attribution not established

No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.

03

Why it matters

— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board
1

Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1

Attacker
I intercept or redirect the update request to my controlled server.
Business
Update infrastructure becomes a pivot point for endpoint compromise.
2

Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2

Attacker
I serve a malicious installer that appears legitimate to the WinGUp updater.
Business
User systems execute attacker code with the privileges of the logged-in user.
3

Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3

Attacker
I establish persistence or lateral movement from the compromised endpoint.
Business
Widespread client-side compromise across organizations using Notepad++ for development or administration.
04

What to do

— defensible action
  • Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05

Coverage & confidence

— what we know, and what we don’t

Established (cited)

  • KEV listing (CISA)
  • EPSS probability (FIRST)
  • 6 reported-exploitation source(s)
  • CWE weakness mapping (NVD)
  • Catalogued by VulnCheck (CNA)
  • Coverage gaps — stated, not hidden

  • No EUVD / GCVE mirror in feed — single-authority dependency for the identifier.
  • EPSS & exposure are time-varying; verify live at the source.
  • Threat-actor attribution not established from feed data — absence of a name is not absence of compromise.
  • No finder/reporter credit recorded in the public CVE entry — the work behind this find is unattributed.
  • Disclosure & credit2
    Catalogued by VulnCheckCNA
    Credited with finding itNo finder named in the public CVE record — the work behind this find is unattributed.