CVE-2020-12801: Crash-recovered MSOffice encrypted documents defaulted to not to using encryption on next save
If LibreOffice has an encrypted document open and crashes, that document is auto-saved encrypted. On restart, LibreOffice offers to restore the document and prompts for the password to decrypt it. If the recovery is successful, and if the file format of the recovered document was not LibreOffice's default ODF file format, then affected versions of LibreOffice default that subsequent saves of the document are unencrypted. This may lead to a user accidentally saving a MSOffice file format document unencrypted while believing it to be encrypted. This issue affects: LibreOffice 6-3 series versions prior to 6.3.6; 6-4 series versions prior to 6.4.3.
Affected Software
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2020-12801?
CVE-2020-12801 is a vulnerability in LibreOffice that allows an attacker to decrypt an encrypted document if LibreOffice crashes while the document is open.
How does CVE-2020-12801 work?
If LibreOffice crashes while an encrypted document is open, the document is auto-saved encrypted. On restart, LibreOffice prompts for the password to decrypt the document and restore it.
What is the severity of CVE-2020-12801?
CVE-2020-12801 has a severity level of medium.
Which versions of LibreOffice are affected by CVE-2020-12801?
CVE-2020-12801 affects LibreOffice versions 6.3.0 to 6.3.6 and 6.4.0 to 6.4.3.
How can I mitigate CVE-2020-12801?
To mitigate CVE-2020-12801, update LibreOffice to a version that is not affected by the vulnerability.