dbcve.org
Office PowerpointApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2009-0226

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2009-05-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
Stack-based buffer overflow in the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter in Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, and 2003 SP3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a long string in sound data in a file that uses a PowerPoint 4.0 native file format, leading to memory corruption, aka "Legacy File Format Vulnerability," a different vulnerability than CVE-2009-0222, CVE-2009-0223, CVE-2009-0227, and CVE-2009-1137.

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 confidence

Stack-based buffer overflow in the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter allows arbitrary code execution via a long string in sound data within PowerPoint 4.0 native format files, causing memory corruption.

MitigationApply Microsoft security patch MS09-017 to affected PowerPoint versions (2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, 2003 SP3) or upgrade to a patched version; consider disabling the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter if legacy file support is unnecessary.

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
Office PowerpointApplication
Affected:= 2000= 2002= 2003

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed PowerPoint version
    Open PowerPoint, go to Help > About Microsoft Office PowerPoint (or About Microsoft PowerPoint), or run 'winword /?' from command line to see version. Alternatively, check Add/Remove Programs or the program's Properties for version details.
    Affected if Version is 2000, 2002, or 2003 (any Service Pack level)
  2. Confirm PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter presence
    The vulnerability exists in the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter component. Check installed converters or file converters via PowerPoint options (File > Options > Save, or legacy converters under Office Tools). The filter is used when opening PowerPoint 4.0 format (.ppt) files.
    Affected if The PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter is installed and available in the system
  3. Determine if legacy PowerPoint 4.0 format support is enabled
    Check whether the system or PowerPoint is configured to open older PowerPoint 4.0 native format files. This may be evident through file association settings or conversion filter defaults.
    Affected if Legacy PowerPoint 4.0 file format support is enabled and the 4.2 conversion filter is active
  4. Review recent PowerPoint file openings
    Audit system logs, recent documents, or user activity for PowerPoint 4.0 format files (.ppt files from older versions) that were recently opened.
    Affected if PowerPoint 4.0 native format files have been opened recently on the system

A system is affected if it runs PowerPoint 2000, 2002, or 2003 with the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter enabled and has the capability to open or has recently opened PowerPoint 4.0 native format files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply Microsoft security patch MS09-017 to affected PowerPoint versions (2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, 2003 SP3) or upgrade to a patched version; consider disabling the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter if legacy file support is unnecessary.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Microsoft Office 2007 SP3 or later / Microsoft 365

  1. 1. Identify all systems running Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000, 2002, or 2003.
  2. 2. Inventory all PowerPoint files, particularly those using legacy PowerPoint 4.0 native file formats or containing embedded sound data.
  3. 3. Upgrade to a supported Microsoft Office version (Office 2007 Service Pack 3 or later, or preferably Microsoft 365).
  4. 4. After upgrading, verify that the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter is no longer in use or has been updated.
  5. 5. Deploy antivirus/anti-malware solutions with behavior monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts.
  6. 6. Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized execution of Office conversion filters.
Caveat Office 2000-2003 are end-of-life and unsupported; upgrading may require file format conversion and compatibility testing with existing workflows

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Office Powerpoint Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,380
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2009-0226 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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