CVE-2008-3006 in SharePoint Server
Summary
by MITRE
Microsoft Office Excel 2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, 2003 SP2 and SP3, and 2007 Gold and SP1; Office Excel Viewer 2003 Gold and SP3; Office Excel Viewer; Office Compatibility Pack 2007 Gold and SP1; Office SharePoint Server 2007 Gold and SP1; and Office 2004 and 2008 for Mac do not properly parse Country record values when loading Excel files, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted Excel file, aka the "Excel Record Parsing Vulnerability."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/15/2019
The CVE-2008-3006 vulnerability represents a critical buffer overflow flaw in Microsoft Office Excel applications across multiple versions and platforms. This vulnerability specifically targets the parsing mechanism of Country record values within Excel file formats, creating a pathway for remote code execution attacks. The flaw affects a broad spectrum of Microsoft Office products including Excel 2000 through 2007, various viewers, compatibility packs, and Mac versions, demonstrating the widespread nature of this parsing vulnerability. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of record header values during the file parsing process, particularly when processing Country records that contain embedded metadata structures.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves a classic buffer overflow condition occurring when Excel applications attempt to parse malformed Country records in Excel files. When the application encounters a specially crafted Excel file containing oversized or malformed Country record data, the parsing routine fails to properly validate the record boundaries before copying data into fixed-size buffers. This improper bounds checking creates a situation where attacker-controlled data can overwrite adjacent memory locations, potentially allowing attackers to inject and execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the affected application. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be triggered through simple file opening operations, making it exploitable through various attack vectors including email attachments, web downloads, and file sharing scenarios.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond individual system compromise to potential enterprise-wide security breaches. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to gain unauthorized access to systems, escalate privileges, and potentially establish persistent backdoors within corporate networks. The broad compatibility across multiple Office versions and platforms increases the attack surface significantly, as organizations with mixed Office environments face elevated risk. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.005 for command and scripting interpreter execution. The vulnerability's exploitation can result in complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and disruption of business operations.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2008-3006 should prioritize immediate patch deployment from Microsoft, as the vendor released security updates specifically addressing this parsing vulnerability. Organizations should implement strict file validation policies, including content scanning and file type verification before opening Excel files, particularly those received from untrusted sources. Network-level protections such as email filtering, web application firewalls, and restricted file type handling can provide additional defense layers. Security teams should also consider implementing sandboxing mechanisms for Excel file processing and monitoring for suspicious file access patterns. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and bounds checking in file parsing operations, aligning with security best practices outlined in the OWASP Top Ten and NIST cybersecurity guidelines. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify and remediate similar parsing flaws in other Microsoft Office components and third-party applications.