CVE-2025-2629
📋 TL;DR
This DLL hijacking vulnerability in NI LabVIEW allows attackers to execute arbitrary code by placing a malicious DLL in an uncontrolled search path. It affects NI LabVIEW 2025 Q1 and earlier versions, potentially compromising systems running this software.
💻 Affected Systems
- NI LabVIEW
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full system compromise with administrative privileges, data theft, ransomware deployment, or persistent backdoor installation.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation leading to unauthorized access to sensitive engineering data and system resources.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper file permissions and user access controls preventing DLL placement.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires ability to place DLL in search path, typically needing local access or social engineering.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: NI LabVIEW 2025 Q2 or later
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download latest NI LabVIEW version from NI website. 2. Run installer with administrative privileges. 3. Follow installation prompts. 4. Restart system after installation completes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict DLL search path permissions
windowsSet strict file permissions on directories in LabVIEW's DLL search path to prevent unauthorized DLL placement.
icacls "C:\Program Files\National Instruments\LabVIEW 2025\" /deny Everyone:(OI)(CI)(W)
Use application whitelisting
windowsConfigure Windows Defender Application Control or similar to only allow signed DLLs from NI.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict file permissions on LabVIEW installation directories
- Use least privilege accounts for LabVIEW operations and monitor for suspicious DLL files
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check LabVIEW version via Help > About LabVIEW. If version is 2025 Q1 or earlier, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Open LabVIEW and navigate to Help > About LabVIEWVerify Fix Applied:
Verify LabVIEW version is 2025 Q2 or later in Help > About LabVIEW.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected DLL loads from non-standard paths in Windows Event Logs
- LabVIEW crash reports from unusual locations
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from LabVIEW process
SIEM Query:
source="windows" AND (event_id=7 OR event_id=11) AND process_name="labview.exe" AND file_path NOT CONTAINS "National Instruments"