CVE-2015-6124 in Office
Summary
by MITRE
Microsoft Word 2007 SP3, Office 2010 SP2, Word 2010 SP2, Word 2013 SP1, Word 2013 RT SP1, and Office Compatibility Pack SP3 allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted Office document, aka "Microsoft Office Memory Corruption Vulnerability."
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/29/2022
The Microsoft Office Memory Corruption Vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-6124 represents a critical security flaw affecting multiple versions of Microsoft Word and the Office Compatibility Pack. This vulnerability resides within the document processing engine of these applications, specifically in how they handle certain file formats and memory allocation during document parsing operations. The flaw allows malicious actors to craft specially designed Office documents that can trigger memory corruption when opened by vulnerable applications, creating an avenue for remote code execution attacks.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper memory handling during the parsing of malformed Office documents. When a user opens a specially crafted document, the Word application's memory management routines fail to properly validate input data, leading to buffer overflows or memory corruption conditions. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and CWE-122, which covers heap-based buffer overflow scenarios. The vulnerability operates at the application layer, specifically within the Microsoft Office document parser, making it particularly dangerous as it requires no special privileges to exploit and can be delivered through standard email attachments or web downloads.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and far-reaching across enterprise environments. Attackers can leverage this flaw to execute arbitrary code on targeted systems without requiring user interaction beyond opening the malicious document. This capability enables a wide range of malicious activities including data exfiltration, system compromise, and deployment of additional malware payloads. The vulnerability affects multiple versions of Microsoft Office, creating widespread exposure across organizations that maintain legacy systems. Security researchers have documented successful exploitation attempts that result in full system compromise, making this vulnerability particularly attractive to advanced persistent threat actors who utilize it for initial access and lateral movement within networks.
Organizations can mitigate this vulnerability through several defensive measures that align with established security frameworks and best practices. Microsoft released security updates and patches specifically addressing this vulnerability, which should be deployed immediately across all affected systems. The recommended mitigation strategy includes implementing strict email filtering and sandboxing techniques to prevent users from opening potentially malicious documents. Additionally, organizations should consider disabling automatic document opening features and implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of untrusted Office documents. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to technique T1059.005 for remote code execution and T1078 for valid accounts usage, highlighting the need for comprehensive network monitoring and access control measures. Regular security assessments and user awareness training should also be implemented to reduce the likelihood of successful exploitation through social engineering vectors.