CVE-2012-0142: Critical severity microsoft office excel vulnerability

Published May 9, 2012

Updated

Microsoft Excel 2003 SP3, 2007 SP2 and SP3, and 2010 Gold and SP1; Office 2008 for Mac; Excel Viewer; and Office Compatibility Pack SP2 and SP3 do not properly handle memory during the opening of files, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted spreadsheet, aka "Excel File Format Memory Corruption in OBJECTLINK Record Vulnerability."

Affected Software

9 affected components

Microsoft Excel=2003-sp3

Microsoft Excel=2007-sp2

Microsoft Excel=2007-sp3

Microsoft Excel=2010

Microsoft Excel=2010-sp1

Microsoft Excel Viewer

Microsoft Office=2008

Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack=sp2

Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack=sp3

Event History

May 9, 2012

CVE Published

via MITRE·12:00 AM

Data Sourced

via MITRE·12:00 AM

Description

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the severity of CVE-2012-0142?

CVE-2012-0142 is rated as critical due to its potential to allow remote code execution.

How do I fix CVE-2012-0142?

To address CVE-2012-0142, users should apply the latest security updates released by Microsoft for their affected Excel versions.

What systems are affected by CVE-2012-0142?

CVE-2012-0142 affects Microsoft Excel 2003, 2007, and 2010, as well as Excel Viewer, Office 2008 for Mac, and the Office Compatibility Pack.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2012-0142?

CVE-2012-0142 is a memory corruption vulnerability that occurs when Microsoft Excel improperly processes specially crafted files.

Can CVE-2012-0142 be exploited via email attachments?

Yes, CVE-2012-0142 can be exploited through malicious email attachments that contain crafted Excel files.