CVE-2009-0202
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 · uneditedArray index error in FL21WIN.DLL in the PowerPoint Freelance Windows 2.1 Translator in Microsoft PowerPoint 2000 and 2002 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a Freelance file with unspecified "layout information" that triggers a heap-based buffer overflow.
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 confidenceArray index error in FL21WIN.DLL (PowerPoint Freelance Windows 2.1 Translator) allows remote code execution via heap-based buffer overflow when processing specially crafted Freelance files with malformed layout information. Affects PowerPoint 2000 and 2002.
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= 2000= 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
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.
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Identify installed PowerPoint versionOpen PowerPoint, click Help > About Microsoft PowerPoint, or run 'winword.exe /?' from Command Prompt to check versionAffected if Version is 2000 (9.0) or 2002 (10.0)
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Locate the vulnerable FL21WIN.DLL fileSearch for FL21WIN.DLL in typical Office program directories such as C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\ or C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Affected if FL21WIN.DLL exists in the PowerPoint program directory, indicating the Freelance translator is installed
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Check if Freelance file open filter is registeredIn PowerPoint, attempt to see if .ff and .flw file types appear in the File > Open dialog file type dropdown, or inspect registry under HKCR\.ff and HKCR\.flwAffected if Freelance file extensions (.ff, .flw) are recognized as openable file types in PowerPoint
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Verify the DLL file versionRight-click FL21WIN.DLL, select Properties > Details to view file version, or use a PowerShell command like (Get-Item 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\FL21WIN.DLL').VersionInfoAffected if DLL version matches the vulnerable Freelance Windows 2.1 translator component (typically shipped with Office 2000/2002)
User is affected if PowerPoint 2000 or 2002 is installed AND the FL21WIN.DLL Freelance translator component exists, allowing specially crafted .ff or .flw files to trigger the heap overflow.
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 dataAvoid opening untrusted Freelance (.ff, .flw) files. Apply Microsoft security updates for affected PowerPoint versions, or upgrade to supported Office versions that no longer include the vulnerable Freelance translator component.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2009-0202 — 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-2009-0202 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
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- 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