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VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2025-59281: Microsoft Xbox Gaming Services · Link Following

Affects Microsoft Xbox Gaming ServicesSource CVE Database V5

0

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.8 High.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 11:07 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
7.8High
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 32% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 14 Oct 2025

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponised: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq Mirage: no evidence on record.

    No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

What to do

Affected software

ProductAffectedFixed in
Microsoft Xbox Gaming ServicesAffected
  • =19.0.0.0
Fixed in–

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2025-59281, organizations should implement the following specific measures: 1) Restrict local user permissions to the minimum necessary, preventing unauthorized users from creating or manipulating symbolic links or junction points within Xbox Gaming Services directories. 2) Employ application whitelisting and integrity checking to detect unauthorized changes to Xbox Gaming Services files or configurations. 3) Monitor and audit file system activities related to symbolic link creation and modification, especially within directories used by Xbox Gaming Services. 4) Isolate gaming service processes using sandboxing or containerization techniques to limit the scope of privilege escalation. 5) Apply the principle of least privilege to all users and services interacting with Xbox Gaming Services. 6) Stay alert for official patches or updates from Microsoft and apply them promptly once available. 7) Educate users about the risks of local privilege escalation and enforce strong endpoint security policies to prevent unauthorized local access. These targeted actions go beyond generic advice by focusing on controlling symbolic link manipulation and local access restrictions specific to this vulnerability.

Description

Improper link resolution before file access ('link following') in XBox Gaming Services allows an authorized attacker to elevate privileges locally.

References

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