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PowershellApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2025-25004

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-10-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.4.13 / 7.5.4 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Improper access control in Microsoft PowerShell allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Microsoft PowerShell stemming from improper access control. An attacker who already has authorized access to the target system can exploit this flaw to gain higher-level privileges, potentially achieving administrator or SYSTEM-level access. The vulnerability specifically affects PowerShell's access control mechanisms.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2025-25004, which patches the improper access control in PowerShell. Organizations should prioritize patching systems via Windows Update or manual update deployment, followed by verification that the updated PowerShell version is running.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
PowershellApplication
Affected:>= 7.4, < 7.4.13>= 7.5, < 7.5.4
Windows 10 1507Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.10240.21161
Windows 10 1607Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.14393.8519
Windows 10 1809Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.17763.7919
Windows 10 21h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19044.6456
Windows 10 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.19045.6456
Windows 11 22h2Operating system
Affected:< 10.0.22621.6060
Windows 11 23h2Operating system
Affected:<= 10.0.22631.6060

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check PowerShell 7.x version
    Run '$PSVersionTable.PSVersion' in PowerShell to get the version number
    Affected if Version is 7.4.x where x < 13, or 7.5.x where x < 4 (i.e., 7.4.0 through 7.4.12, or 7.5.0 through 7.5.3)
  2. Check Windows 10 build number
    Run 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Version"' to see the Windows 10 build
    Affected if Windows 10 version 1507 build < 10240.21161, version 1607 build < 14393.8519, version 1809 build < 17763.7919, version 21h2 build < 19044.6456, or version 22h2 build < 19045.6456
  3. Check Windows 11 build number
    Run 'winver' or check the Windows 11 version via 'systeminfo'
    Affected if Windows 11 version 22h2 build < 22621.6060, or version 23h2 build <= 22631.6060
  4. Verify PowerShell module access controls
    Review any custom PowerShell module installations and their ACLs using 'Get-Acl' on module paths under $env:PSModulePath
    Affected if Non-admin users have write access to module directories that PowerShell loads at startup

Your environment is affected if you run any PowerShell 7.4.x before 7.4.13, PowerShell 7.5.x before 7.5.4, or Windows 10/11 with build numbers below the thresholds listed above.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 7.4.13 / 7.5.4 / 10.0.10240.21161 or later
Fixed in 7.4.137.5.410.0.10240.21161
Interim mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2025-25004, which patches the improper access control in PowerShell. Organizations should prioritize patching systems via Windows Update or manual update deployment, followed by verification that the updated PowerShell version is running.

Recommended fix High confidence

PowerShell 7.4.13 or later; PowerShell 7.5.4 or later; or apply Windows February 2025 security updates

  1. For PowerShell 7.x: Update PowerShell to version 7.4.13 or later (for 7.4.x branch) or 7.5.4 or later (for 7.5.x branch) using: 'pwsh -Command "Install-Module -Name PowerShellGet -Force; Update-Module -Name PowerShellGet"' then download the latest release from github.com/PowerShell/PowerShell/releases
  2. For Windows systems: Apply the February 2025 or later Windows Security Update via Windows Update (Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Check for updates)
  3. Verify the installed version by running '$PSVersionTable.PSVersion' in PowerShell and confirm it shows 7.4.13+ or 7.5.4+
Caveat PowerShell upgrades maintain strong backward compatibility but some scripts using experimental features may need adjustment; review release notes for breaking changes between versions

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Powershell Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-25004 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data