CVE-2002-1776
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedNOTE: this issue has been disputed by the vendor. Symantec Norton AntiVirus 2002 allows remote attackers to bypass virus protection via a Word Macro virus with a .nch or .dbx extension, which is automatically recognized and executed as a Microsoft Office document. NOTE: the vendor has disputed this issue, acknowledging that the initial scan is bypassed, but the Office plug-in would detect the virus before it is executed
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceSymantec Norton AntiVirus 2002 can be bypassed by embedding a Word Macro virus in a file with .nch or .dbx extension. The antivirus initially scans these files but they are automatically recognized and executed as Microsoft Office documents, bypassing the virus protection. The vendor disputes this, claiming the Office plug-in would catch the virus before execution.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 2002CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Verify Norton AntiVirus versionCheck the installed version of Symantec Norton AntiVirus on the system. Look in Add/Remove Programs, the program help about section, or right-click the Norton icon and select 'About'.Affected if The installed version is Norton AntiVirus 2002 specifically.
-
Confirm .nch file extension handlingInspect file associations for .nch extension in Windows. Look in Control Panel > Folder Options > File Types, or check registry under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.nch to see what application is associated with this extension.Affected if The .nch extension is associated with Microsoft Office or a handler that can execute embedded macros.
-
Confirm .dbx file extension handlingInspect file associations for .dbx extension in Windows. Look in Control Panel > Folder Options > File Types, or check registry under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.dbx to see what application is associated with this extension.Affected if The .dbx extension is associated with Microsoft Office or a handler that can execute embedded macros.
-
Check Office plugin status in NortonIn Norton AntiVirus 2002, open the configuration or settings and look for the Office plugin/scanner component. Check if it is enabled or disabled.Affected if The Office plugin is disabled or missing, meaning macro viruses in non-standard file types would not be scanned before execution.
You are affected if Norton AntiVirus 2002 is installed and .nch or .dbx files are associated with Office handlers while the Office plugin scanning is disabled or absent.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataReplace Norton AntiVirus 2002 with a modern endpoint protection solution, as this is a 22-year-old product that is long past end-of-life and no longer supported.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,904.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2002-1776 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2002-1776 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data