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OfficeApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2009-1134

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2009-06-10
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
Excel in 2007 Microsoft Office System SP1 and SP2; Microsoft Office Excel Viewer; and Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats SP1 and SP2 allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a BIFF file with a malformed Qsir (0x806) record object, aka "Record Pointer Corruption Vulnerability."

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

A record pointer corruption vulnerability exists in Microsoft Excel 2007 SP1/SP2, Excel Viewer, and Office Compatibility Pack when parsing malformed Qsir (0x806) records in BIFF files. The malformed record causes pointer corruption during parsing, allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code via specially crafted Excel files.

MitigationApply Microsoft security patches from MS09-009 or subsequent updates; restrict opening of untrusted Excel files from unknown sources; consider upgrading to newer Office versions with extended support.

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
OfficeApplication
Affected:= 2004= 2008= xp
Office Compatibility Pack For Word Excel Ppt 2007Application
Affected:all versions
Office ExcelApplication
Affected:= 2000= 2003= 2007
Office Excel ViewerApplication
Affected:all versions= 2003
Office Sharepoint ServerApplication
Affected:= 2007
Open Xml File Format ConverterApplication
Affected:all versions

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 Microsoft Office Excel or affected component
    Open Excel, go to Help > About Microsoft Office Excel (or Help > About Microsoft Excel). Alternatively, check Programs and Features in Control Panel for installed Microsoft Office components including Excel Viewer, Office Compatibility Pack, or Open XML File Format Converter.
    Affected if Any of the following are installed: Excel 2000, Excel 2003, Excel 2007, Excel Viewer (all versions), Office Compatibility Pack for Word/Excel/PPT 2007, SharePoint Server 2007, or Open XML File Format Converter.
  2. Verify the exact version number of installed Excel
    In Excel, click Help > About. Note the version (such as 2000, 2003, 2007). For Office 2004, 2008, or XP, check the Office application version similarly. For Compatibility Pack, check the installed version of the converter component.
    Affected if Version is Excel 2000, Excel 2003, Excel 2007, or any version of Excel Viewer, Office Compatibility Pack, SharePoint Server 2007, or Open XML File Format Converter.
  3. Check if security update MS09-009 has been applied
    Open Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features > View installed updates. Search for security update MS09-009 (KB968557) or subsequent Excel security updates. Alternatively, check the installed version against Microsoft Knowledge Base articles for patched versions.
    Affected if MS09-009 (KB968557) or later Excel security update is NOT installed, and the installed Excel version is one of the affected versions listed.
  4. Determine if the system processes untrusted BIFF-format Excel files
    Review system or application configuration for handling Excel file attachments or imported BIFF files. Check email filtering, attachment screening, or document management systems that may automatically process Excel files. Examine whether users routinely open Excel files from external or untrusted sources.
    Affected if Users or automated processes open, preview, or parse BIFF-format Excel files from untrusted sources without prior validation or security filtering.

You are affected if any vulnerable Excel version (2000, 2003, 2007), Excel Viewer, Office Compatibility Pack, SharePoint Server 2007, or Open XML File Format Converter is installed AND MS09-009 or later security patch has not been applied AND the system handles Excel BIFF 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 patches from MS09-009 or subsequent updates; restrict opening of untrusted Excel files from unknown sources; consider upgrading to newer Office versions with extended support.

Recommended fix High confidence

Microsoft Office 2010 or later / Microsoft 365 (ensure latest version)

  1. 1. Identify all systems with affected Microsoft Office installations (Excel 2000, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, XP; Excel Viewer 2003/2007; Office Compatibility Pack; Open XML File Format Converter).
  2. 2. Prioritize systems that handle untrusted Excel files, as this is a remote code execution vulnerability.
  3. 3. For immediate mitigation: Apply Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-009 patch if available from Microsoft Update or the Microsoft Download Center.
  4. 4. Implement the principle of least privilege: Configure Excel to open files in Protected View or disable automatic opening of attachments.
  5. 5. Configure email gateways to block or quarantine .xls attachments from untrusted sources.
  6. 6. Train users not to open Excel attachments from untrusted or unknown sources.
  7. 7. Plan migration path to supported Microsoft Office versions (Office 2010 or later, or Microsoft 365).
Caveat Upgrading from Office 2000/XP/2003/2004/2007/2008 to Office 2010 or Microsoft 365 may require file format migration, macro rewrite, and compatibility testing. Some legacy features may not be supported.

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

Fix this in Office Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
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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-2009-1134 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