CVE-2026-85995

Description

Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. From 8.9.7 until 8.9.8, the Notepad++ updater and signature verification path can accept a modified GUP.exe file whose embedded certificate metadata remains present even though its Authenticode digest is invalid. An attacker who can replace or plant the updater-related file can cause Notepad++ to launch attacker-modified code when a user triggers the updater path, but the issue does not provide remote code execution by itself. This issue is fixed in version 8.9.8.

Overview

State: PUBLISHED
Assigner (CNA): GitHub_M
CVSS severity: HIGH
CVSS score: 7.3 / 10
CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Effective score: 7.3 / 10 HIGH source: CNA overview
CWE(s): CWE-347
Reserved: 2026-09-04
Published: 2026-09-22 17:15 UTC
Last updated: 2026-09-22 17:43 UTC
Source: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/main/cves/2026/85xxx/CVE-2026-85995.json
Linked Threat: CVE-2026-85995 — Notepad++: Authenticode verification bypass allows modified updater execution

NVD triage scoring NVD CVE 2.0

Layer NVD adds on top of the CNA's CVE record — published / last-modified timestamps, exploitability / impact subscores, and the FIRST.org EPSS probability that this CVE will be exploited in the wild in the next 30 days.

NVD published: 2026-09-22 18:17:23 UTC
NVD last modified: 2026-09-22 18:17:23 UTC
NVD CVSS v3.1: 7.3 / 10 HIGH source: security-advisories@github.com
NVD CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploitability subscore: 1.3 / 10
Impact subscore: 5.9 / 10

European Union Vulnerability Database ENISA EUVD

ENISA's official EU repository for curated vulnerability intelligence. Carries a separate identifier (EUVD-YYYY-NNNN) and frequently exposes an earlier-published description + CVSS than NVD does.

EUVD ID: EUVD-2026-84575
Assigner: GitHub_M
Published: Sep 22, 2026, 5:15:05 PM
Updated: Sep 22, 2026, 5:43:17 PM
EUVD base score (CVSS 3.1): 7.3 / 10
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EUVD-reported EPSS: 0.0000
Vendors: notepad-plus-plus
Products: notepad-plus-plus (< 8.9.8)

ENISA description: Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. From 8.9.7 until 8.9.8, the Notepad++ updater and signature verification path can accept a modified GUP.exe file whose embedded certificate metadata remains present even though its Authenticode digest is invalid. An attacker who can replace or plant the updater-related file can cause Notepad++ to launch attacker-modified code when a user triggers the updater path, but the issue does not provide remote code execution by itself. This issue is fixed in version 8.9.8.

EUVD references (4)

Affected products (1)

Vendor	Product	Versions	Platforms
notepad-plus-plus	notepad-plus-plus	`< 8.9.8` (affected)	—

Vendor references (4)

References embedded in the original CVE record by the assigning CNA.

https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/security/advisories/GHSA-cx87-7hhq-m2j3 x_refsource_CONFIRM
https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/commit/9edf40f725ce62b26c454905e39f0f7fdbbb3ffa x_refsource_MISC
https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/releases/tag/v8.9.8 x_refsource_MISC
https://notepad-plus-plus.org/news/v898-released x_refsource_MISC

Web references (0)

DuckDuckGo results ranked by threat-intel / vendor advisory domains. Generated by the 🔎 Find references (web) button above — same flow as the Remediations search.

No web references attached yet.

NVD-tagged references (4)

Reference list NVD curates from the CNA record, vendor advisories, and third-party reports. The tag chips below are NVD's analyst-assigned categories.

https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/commit/9edf40f725ce62b26c454905e39f0f7fdbbb3ffa security-advisories@github.com
https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/releases/tag/v8.9.8 security-advisories@github.com
https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/security/advisories/GHSA-cx87-7hhq-m2j3 security-advisories@github.com
https://notepad-plus-plus.org/news/v898-released security-advisories@github.com

Remediations (10)

Remediations are stored against the linked Threat row; the list below is deduplicated across both pages.

CVE-2026-85995 - Vulnerability Details - OpenCVE

web:app.opencve.io

Remediation No vendor fix or workaround currently provided. OpenCVE Recommended Actions Update Notepad++ to version 8.9.8 or newer to apply the vendor fix (CWE-347). Ensure that the updater files, especially GUP.exe, are obtained from the official release source and verify their integrity before installation (CWE-347).

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
CVE-2026-85995 - Notepad++: Authenticode verification bypass allows ...

web:cvefeed.io

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-85995 vulnerability anywhere in the article. Results are limited to the first 20 news articles due to potential performance issues. The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-85995 vulnerability over time.

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
CVE-2026-85995: Notepad Plus Plus Vulnerability | CVETodo

web:cvetodo.com

CVE-2026-85995 : Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature in Notepad Plus Plus. Includes technical details, affected versions, and mitigation steps.

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
Security Update Guide - Microsoft Security Response Center

web:msrc.microsoft.com

Security Update Guide - Microsoft Security Response Center

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
CVE-2026-85995 - Notepad++: Authenticode verification bypass allows ...

web:secalerts.co

CVE-2026-85995 : Notepad++: Authenticode verification bypass allows modified updater execution Published Sep 22, 2026 · Updated 19 hours ago

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
Microsoft Patch Tracker (September 2026): Exploit-Ranked | Senserva

web:senserva.com

Every Microsoft security patch (KB) and the CVEs it fixes, with severity, CVSS, and CISA KEV status. Cross-linked to the CVE reference.

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
March 10, 2026—Hotpatch KB5079420 (OS Builds 26200.7979 and 26100.7979 ...

web:support.microsoft.com

This Hotpatch update for Windows 11, version 25H2 and 24H2 (KB5079420), improves functionality, performance, and reliability. To learn more about differences between security updates, optional non-security preview updates, out-of-band (OOB) updates, and continuous innovation, see Windows monthly updates explained. For information on Windows update terminology, see the different types of ...

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
CVE-2026-85995: notepad-plus-plus: Notepad++ is a free and ... - Rapid7

web:www.rapid7.com

CVE-2026-85995 : notepad-plus-plus: Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. View severity, references, and remediation details from Rapid7.

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
Microsoft Issues Emergency Patch for Active Office Zero-Day

web:www.techrepublic.com

Microsoft released an emergency Office patch to fix an actively exploited zero-day flaw that lets attackers bypass security via malicious files.

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC
CVE-2026-85995 | Tenable®

web:www.tenable.com

Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. From 8.9.7 until 8.9.8, the Notepad++ updater and signature verification path can accept a modified GUP.exe file whose embedded certificate metadata remains present even though its Authenticode digest is invalid. An attacker who can replace or plant the updater-related file can cause Notepad++ to launch attacker-modified code when a user ...

2026-09-23 15:14 UTC

AI Forensic Analysis

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Raw JSON

The full cvelistV5 record. Download as CVE-2026-85995.json.

{
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              "content": {
                "id": "CVE-2026-85995",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "Exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "Automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "Technical Impact": "total"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-09-22T17:35:40.027541Z",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              },
              "type": "ssvc"
            }
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        "providerMetadata": {
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          "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
          "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
        },
        "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
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        }
      ],
      "metrics": [
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            "attackComplexity": "LOW",
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    "dateReserved": "2026-09-04T19:17:36.245Z",
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