CVE-2016-7262 in Office
Summary
by MITRE
Microsoft Excel 2007 SP3, Excel 2010 SP2, Excel 2013 SP1, Excel 2013 RT SP1, Excel 2016, Office Compatibility Pack SP3, and Excel Viewer allow user-assisted remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via a crafted cell that is mishandled upon a click, aka "Microsoft Office Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/09/2024
This vulnerability represents a critical security flaw in Microsoft Office Excel applications that enables remote code execution through crafted malicious cells. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of specially constructed cell data during user interaction, specifically when a user clicks on a maliciously formatted cell within an Excel spreadsheet. The flaw exists in multiple versions of Excel including 2007 through 2016, as well as the Office Compatibility Pack, making it particularly widespread across enterprise environments. According to CWE-121, this vulnerability involves a memory-based buffer overflow condition that occurs when the application fails to properly validate cell content before processing user interactions, creating a pathway for arbitrary code execution. The security feature bypass aspect indicates that the vulnerability allows attackers to circumvent existing Office security protections that are designed to prevent such malicious activities.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple data corruption or application crashes. When exploited, the vulnerability enables attackers to execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the logged-on user, potentially leading to complete system compromise. This type of vulnerability falls under the ATT&CK technique T1203 - Exploitation for Client Execution, where adversaries leverage application vulnerabilities to gain code execution on target systems. The user-assisted nature of the attack means that successful exploitation requires user interaction, typically through social engineering to convince victims to open malicious Excel files. However, once a user clicks on the crafted cell, the attack vector becomes fully autonomous, allowing the attacker to execute malicious code without further user interaction. The vulnerability's presence in Excel Viewer applications also expands the potential attack surface to users who may not have full Office installations but still encounter malicious spreadsheets in their daily operations.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability must address both immediate remediation and long-term security hardening measures. Microsoft released patches and updates that address the underlying cell processing logic to properly validate and sanitize cell content before execution. Organizations should implement strict file validation policies that scan Excel files for suspicious content patterns and employ sandboxing techniques to isolate potentially malicious spreadsheets. Network-level protections such as email filtering and web proxy configurations can help prevent delivery of malicious Excel files to end users. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of user education and awareness programs that train employees to recognize suspicious file attachments and avoid clicking on unexpected content within spreadsheets. Security teams should implement monitoring solutions that track Excel application usage patterns and detect anomalous behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, maintaining current antivirus signatures and endpoint protection solutions that specifically target Office-based exploits provides an additional layer of defense. Organizations should also consider implementing application whitelisting policies that restrict execution of untrusted Office files and regularly audit their Office installations to ensure all patches are applied and vulnerabilities are addressed through proper vulnerability management processes.