Skype for Business and Microsoft Lync
CVE-2018-8238 — Skype for Business and Lync Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability
Executive Summary
A security feature bypass vulnerability exists when Skype for Business or Lync do not properly parse UNC path links shared via messages. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could execute arbitrary commands in the context of the logged-in user. The security feature bypass by itself does not allow arbitrary code execution. Instead, an attacker would have to convince users to click a link to a file. In a file-sharing attack scenario, an attacker could provide a specially-crafted file designed to exploit the vulnerability, and then convince a user to click the link to the file. The update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how Skype for Business and Lync handle links to UNC paths.
Overview
Important
MS Severity
Not Exploited
MS Exploit Status
Less Likely
MS Exploit Likelihood
EPSS Score
0.05456
probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
0.92031 percentile - updated 2026-08-14
View on FIRST.org
Affected Products
4 affected products
| Product | KB Article | Severity | Impact | Restart Required |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Lync 2013 Service Pack 1 (32-bit) | 4022225 (Security Update) |
Important | Security Feature Bypass | Maybe |
| Microsoft Lync 2013 Service Pack 1 (64-bit) | 4022225 (Security Update) |
Important | Security Feature Bypass | Maybe |
| Skype for Business 2016 (32-bit) | 4022221 (Security Update) |
Important | Security Feature Bypass | Maybe |
| Skype for Business 2016 (64-bit) | 4022221 (Security Update) |
Important | Security Feature Bypass | Maybe |
Patches
2 patches
| Article | Type | Restart |
|---|---|---|
4022225 |
Security Update | Maybe |
4022221 |
Security Update | Maybe |
Known Exploits
No known exploits have been linked for this CVE yet. When available, exploit references will be sourced from public repositories and may be unverified, incomplete, or non-functional. Always review code carefully before use in any environment.
Acknowledgments
References
On This Page