CVE-2010-2568: Microsoft Windows Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

High severity, CVSS 7.8. Actively exploited: in CISA KEV since 2022-09-15. EPSS: 91.3% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Windows Shell in Microsoft Windows XP SP3, Server 2003 SP2, Vista SP1 and SP2, Server 2008 SP2 and R2, and Windows 7 allows local users or remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted (1) .LNK or (2) .PIF shortcut file, which is not properly handled during icon display in Windows Explorer, as demonstrated in the wild in July 2010, and originally reported for malware that leverages CVE-2010-2772 in Siemens WinCC SCADA systems.

Affected products

• Microsoft Windows 7: affected versions not specified
• Microsoft Windows Server 2003: affected versions not specified
• Microsoft Windows Server 2008: affected versions not specified; version r2 only
• Microsoft Windows Vista: affected versions not specified
• Microsoft Windows XP: affected versions not specified

Published 2010-07-22. Last modified 2026-06-16.