CVE-2010-0029
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 · uneditedBuffer overflow in Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2002 SP3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PowerPoint document, aka "PowerPoint File Path Handling Buffer Overflow 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 · moderate confidenceBuffer overflow vulnerability in Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2002 SP3's file path handling allows attackers to execute arbitrary code by tricking users into opening specially crafted PowerPoint files. The overflow occurs when PowerPoint processes malformed file path data, enabling attackers to overwrite memory and inject malicious code.
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
- 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, go to Help > About Microsoft Office PowerPoint, or check the registry key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\PowerPoint.Application\CurVerAffected if The version shown is not 2002 (the vulnerability only affects PowerPoint 2002)
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Confirm Service Pack levelCheck the installed updates via Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features > View installed updates, looking for 'Service Pack 3 for Microsoft Office XP (KB2287472)' or similar SP3 indicatorAffected if Service Pack 3 is installed - only SP3 of PowerPoint 2002 is affected
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Verify PowerPoint executable versionLocate the PowerPoint executable (POWERPNT.exe) in the Office installation directory, right-click > Properties > Details to view file versionAffected if File version corresponds to PowerPoint 2002 (version 10.0.xxxx)
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 MS10-004 to patch the vulnerability, or upgrade to a supported version of Microsoft Office. Users should avoid opening untrusted PowerPoint files until the patch is applied.
Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2002 SP3 with MS10-004 applied, or migrate to a supported Office version (Office 2003 SP3 or higher)
- Verify the current PowerPoint version by opening PowerPoint, clicking 'Help', and checking 'About Microsoft Office PowerPoint' to confirm version 2002 SP3
- Download and install the MS10-004 security update from Microsoft Update or the Microsoft Download Center (https://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=9a8d7f2a-6e27-407b-8f43-4f287a3ca652)
- Alternatively, run Microsoft Update to automatically detect and install the security update for PowerPoint 2002 SP3
- After installation, restart the computer and verify the update was applied successfully through Windows Update history
- If Microsoft Update is unavailable or the system is offline, manually download the standalone update package from the Microsoft Download Center
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2010-0029 — 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-2010-0029 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
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