CVE-2025-49457
Published: 12 August 2025
Summary
CVE-2025-49457 is a critical-severity Untrusted Search Path (CWE-426) vulnerability in Zoom Workplace Virtual Desktop Infrastructure. Its CVSS base score is 9.6 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 41.1th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 CM-10 (Software Usage Restrictions) and SI-2 (Flaw Remediation).
Deeper analysis
CVE-2025-49457 is an untrusted search path vulnerability (CWE-426) affecting certain Zoom Clients for Windows. Published on 2025-08-12, it enables an unauthenticated user to achieve an escalation of privilege through network access. The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.6 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating critical severity due to its network vector, low attack complexity, lack of required privileges, and high impacts across confidentiality, integrity, and availability with a changed scope.
An unauthenticated attacker with network access can exploit this vulnerability by leveraging the untrusted search path, but it requires user interaction, such as a user being tricked into executing a malicious file or action within the Zoom client environment. Successful exploitation leads to privilege escalation on the targeted Windows system, potentially granting the attacker high-level control over the affected machine, including full read/write/execute capabilities and system disruption.
Zoom has issued security bulletin ZSB-25030, available at https://www.zoom.com/en/trust/security-bulletin/zsb-25030, which provides details on affected versions and recommended mitigations or patches. Security practitioners should consult this advisory for precise remediation steps.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2025-24529
Vulnerability details
Untrusted search path in certain Zoom Clients for Windows may allow an unauthenticated user to conduct an escalation of privilege via network access
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Untrusted search path (CWE-426) directly enables DLL side-loading for privilege escalation on Windows.
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Directly remediates the untrusted search path vulnerability in Zoom Client by applying vendor patches from security bulletin ZSB-25030.
Prevents execution of malicious DLLs exploited via the untrusted search path by enforcing deny-all-permit-by-exception software usage restrictions.
Malicious code protection scans for and blocks DLLs placed in untrusted paths that could lead to privilege escalation in Zoom Client.