Preface: Microsoft has launched several products (Semantic Kernel, Microsoft.Extensions.AI, and Azure.OpenAI), which initially caused confusion for developers. Furthermore, the Semantic Kernel is currently being “upgraded” to the new Microsoft Agent Framework, leading some developers to question future support for the Semantic Kernel.
Python, with its rich libraries and large open-source community, remains the “universal language” in artificial intelligence research and data science. LangChain, as the primary alternative, is also based on Python. Python remains dominant in the field of artificial intelligence/machine learning.
Background: Microsoft developed Semantic Kernel as an open-source SDK to bridge conventional programming languages (C#, Python, Java) with advanced LLMs, enabling developers to build enterprise-grade, agentic AI applications. It simplifies orchestrating complex AI workflows, allows swapping models without rewriting code, and ensures secure, compliant integration of AI with existing systems.
Semantic Kernel uses plugins (formerly skills or functions) to extend its capabilities beyond its core prompt engineering functionality and integrate with external services, data sources, and API.
- Semantic Kernel acts as an orchestrator, using the LLM to decide which plugins to use and when, effectively automating complex tasks that involve multiple steps and tools. The LLM determines the necessary sequence of actions to fulfill a user’s request.
- Plugins allow the LLM to interact with real-world applications and data. For example, a plugin could retrieve real-time weather information, search a database, book a flight, or send an email.
The airline and travel industry is beginning to use Microsoft Semantic Kernel to build intelligent, AI-powered applications, particularly for automating customer service and booking processes. Developers are using Semantic Kernel to build dialogue agents that can understand complex booking instructions, such as “book the cheapest flight from Hong Kong to Tokyo”, and handle the booking process independently.
Vulnerability details: CVE-2026-25592 Semantic Kernel is an SDK used to build, orchestrate, and deploy AI agents and multi-agent systems. Prior to 1.70.0, an Arbitrary File Write vulnerability has been identified in Microsoft’s Semantic Kernel .NET SDK, specifically within the SessionsPythonPlugin. The problem has been fixed in Microsoft.SemanticKernel.Core version 1.70.0. As a mitigation, users can create a Function Invocation Filter which checks the arguments being passed to any calls to DownloadFileAsync or UploadFileAsync and ensures the provided localFilePath is allow listed.
Official announcement: Please refer to the link for details –https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-25592