Microsoft Windows LNK File UI Misrepresentation Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Microsoft Windows. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file.

The specific flaw exists within the handling of .LNK files. Crafted data in an .LNK file can cause hazardous content in the file to be invisible to a user who inspects the file via the Windows-provided user interface. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current user. Was ZDI-CAN-25373.

References

• https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-9491
• https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-25-148
• https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/advisory/ADV25258226
• https://www.virustotal.com/gui/file/a55789d49c395a9b16cb56b0544266d9ecee409fa3c5fead8082f28c2aff4e76