CVE-2009-2506
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 · uneditedInteger overflow in the text converters in Microsoft Office Word 2002 SP3 and 2003 SP3; Works 8.5; Office Converter Pack; and WordPad in Windows 2000 SP4, XP SP2 and SP3, and Server 2003 SP2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a DOC file with an invalid number of property names in the DocumentSummaryInformation stream, which 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 confidenceInteger overflow in Microsoft Office Word, Works, Office Converter Pack, and WordPad text converters allows remote code execution via specially crafted DOC files. The vulnerability is triggered when processing a DOC file with an invalid number of property names in the DocumentSummaryInformation stream, which causes a heap-based buffer overflow.
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 dataall versionsall versionsall versionsall versions= 2002= 2003all versions= 8.5CVSS 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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Check installed Microsoft Office Word versionOpen Word, go to Help > About Microsoft Office Word, or check Programs and Features for Microsoft Office Word entry. Look for version 2002 (10.x) or 2003 (11.x).Affected if Word version is exactly 2002 or 2003 and opens untrusted DOC files
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Check Microsoft Works versionOpen Works, go to Help > About, or check Programs and Features for Microsoft Works 8.Affected if Works version is 8.5 and opens untrusted DOC files
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Check for Microsoft Office Converter Pack installationCheck Programs and Features for 'Microsoft Office Converter Pack' entry, or verify presence of conversion filters in Office installation.Affected if Converter Pack is installed and processes DOC files
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Verify Windows version for WordPad vulnerabilityRun 'winver' command or check System Properties. The vulnerability affects Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003 all versions.Affected if Windows version is 2000, XP, or Server 2003 and WordPad opens DOC files
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Confirm DOC file processing exposureReview which applications are associated to open .doc files and which text converters are enabled for document conversion.Affected if Any affected product (Word 2002/2003, Works 8.5, Converter Pack, or WordPad on affected Windows) is used to open DOC files from untrusted sources
Your environment is affected if you have Word 2002/2003, Works 8.5, Office Converter Pack, or WordPad on Windows 2000/XP/Server 2003 installed and routinely open DOC files, especially from untrusted sources.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply Microsoft security update MS09-010 to patch the vulnerability on all affected systems. Until patched, warn users against opening untrusted DOC files from unknown sources.
Microsoft Office 2010 or later/Microsoft 365; Windows 10 or 11; Note: Windows XP/2000/Server 2003 are end-of-life and require OS migration
- For Microsoft Office Word: Upgrade to a supported version of Microsoft Office (Office 2010 or later, or Microsoft 365)
- For Windows XP/2000/Server 2003: These operating systems are end-of-life. Upgrade to a supported Windows version (Windows 10 or 11)
- For Microsoft Works 8.5: Discontinue use and migrate to Microsoft Office or another supported office suite
- For WordPad: Update to the latest version included with your current Windows installation
- After upgrading, ensure the DOC file handler is updated to the latest version
- Verify the DocumentSummaryInformation stream handling is fixed in the new versions
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2009-2506 — 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-2009-2506 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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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