CVE-2013-3850 in Office
Summary
by MITRE
Microsoft Word 2003 SP3, 2007 SP3, and 2010 SP1 and SP2; Office Compatibility Pack SP3; and Word Viewer allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted Office document, aka "Word Memory Corruption Vulnerability."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/24/2021
The CVE-2013-3850 vulnerability represents a critical memory corruption flaw affecting multiple versions of Microsoft Word and the Office Compatibility Pack. This vulnerability resides in the way these applications process specially crafted Office documents, creating a pathway for remote code execution or denial of service attacks. The flaw specifically impacts Word 2003 SP3, Word 2007 SP3, Word 2010 SP1 and SP2, the Office Compatibility Pack SP3, and Word Viewer installations. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and memory management within the document parsing routines that handle various Office file formats including .doc, .docx, and related compatibility formats. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious documents that trigger buffer overflows or other memory corruption conditions when opened by vulnerable applications.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability involves manipulating document structures to cause memory corruption during parsing operations. When a user opens a crafted document, the vulnerable Word application attempts to parse malicious content that leads to improper memory handling, potentially allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the logged-on user. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-125 as "Out-of-bounds Read" and CWE-787 as "Out-of-bounds Write," reflecting the memory corruption aspects of the flaw. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203 which describes exploitation for execution through malicious document files, and T1059 which covers execution through scripting languages often employed in document-based attacks.
The operational impact of CVE-2013-3850 extends beyond simple denial of service scenarios to encompass full system compromise. Organizations running affected versions of Microsoft Word face significant risk as attackers can leverage this vulnerability to gain unauthorized access to systems, potentially leading to data breaches, lateral movement within networks, and persistent threats. The vulnerability's remote exploitability means that simply opening a malicious document can result in system compromise without requiring user interaction beyond the initial document opening. This makes it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where users frequently open documents from external sources or email attachments. The widespread deployment of affected Word versions across organizations increases the potential attack surface significantly.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2013-3850 primarily focus on immediate patching and implementation of defensive measures. Microsoft released security updates addressing this vulnerability through Microsoft Security Bulletin MS13-069, which should be applied immediately to all affected systems. Organizations should implement application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of Office applications from untrusted sources, deploy email filtering solutions to block malicious attachments, and educate users about the risks of opening unknown documents. Network segmentation and privilege separation can help limit the potential impact if exploitation occurs. Additionally, implementing Office document protection features such as Protected View mode and disabling automatic execution of macros can provide additional layers of defense. Regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify any remaining unpatched systems within the organization's infrastructure.