CVE-2015-2467 in Office
Summary
by MITRE
Microsoft Office 2007 SP3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted document, aka "Microsoft Office Memory Corruption Vulnerability."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/07/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-2467 represents a critical memory corruption flaw within Microsoft Office 2007 Service Pack 3 that enables remote code execution through maliciously crafted documents. This vulnerability resides in the way Office processes certain file formats, specifically targeting memory management functions that handle document parsing and rendering operations. The flaw manifests when Office attempts to parse malformed or specially constructed documents that exploit buffer overflow conditions or heap corruption patterns within the application's memory handling mechanisms.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability operates through memory corruption techniques that fall under CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions. The flaw typically occurs when Office encounters specially crafted elements within document files such as wordprocessingml documents or other supported formats that contain oversized data structures or malformed headers. When the application attempts to allocate memory for these structures, it fails to properly validate input boundaries, allowing attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations with malicious code payloads. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be triggered through simple document attachment delivery methods, making it highly exploitable in phishing campaigns and social engineering attacks.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-2467 extends beyond simple code execution to encompass full system compromise capabilities. Attackers leveraging this vulnerability can gain unauthorized access to target systems, potentially escalating privileges and establishing persistent backdoors. The attack surface is broad as Office 2007 SP3 was widely deployed across enterprise environments, making organizations particularly vulnerable to targeted attacks. This vulnerability maps directly to several ATT&CK tactics including initial access through malicious document delivery and execution through code injection techniques. The exploitation process typically involves crafting a document with malicious payload embedded within legitimate Office file structures, which when opened by an unpatched Office application triggers the memory corruption and subsequent code execution.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patch deployment through Microsoft's security updates, specifically addressing the memory corruption issues in Office 2007 SP3. Organizations should implement comprehensive email filtering solutions to block suspicious document attachments and disable automatic opening of Office files from untrusted sources. Network segmentation and application whitelisting policies can further reduce exploitation success rates by limiting user access to potentially vulnerable Office applications. Security monitoring should focus on detecting unusual file execution patterns and memory access anomalies that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and implementing layered defense mechanisms. Additionally, user education programs should emphasize the risks of opening unexpected document attachments, particularly those received via email or downloaded from untrusted websites. Organizations should also consider implementing sandboxing technologies for document processing and regularly audit their Office deployment configurations to ensure all systems are properly patched and secured against known memory corruption vulnerabilities.