dbcve.org
PowerpointApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2011-0976

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-02-10
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
Microsoft PowerPoint 2002 SP3, 2003 SP3, and 2007 SP2; Office 2004 and 2008 for Mac; Open XML File Format Converter for Mac; Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats SP2; and PowerPoint Viewer 2007 SP2 do not properly handle Office Art containers that have invalid records, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a PowerPoint document with a container that triggers certain access to an uninitialized object, aka "OfficeArt Atom RCE 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

This is a remote code execution vulnerability in Microsoft PowerPoint and Office products where improper handling of Office Art containers with invalid records leads to access of an uninitialized object, causing memory corruption. Attackers can exploit this by crafting a malicious PowerPoint document that triggers the vulnerability when opened by the victim.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates for the affected PowerPoint and Office products (2002 SP3, 2003 SP3, 2007 SP2, Office 2004/2008 for Mac, and related components). Users should avoid opening untrusted PowerPoint files from unknown sources.

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
PowerpointApplication
Affected:= 2007

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. Verify PowerPoint 2007 is installed
    Open PowerPoint, click File, then click Help. The version number is displayed in the right pane under 'About Microsoft Office PowerPoint'. Alternatively, open Control Panel > Programs and Features, locate Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 in the list, and note the version.
    Affected if The installed version is Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 (version 12.0) exactly, with no updates applied.
  2. Confirm the exact PowerPoint build number
    In PowerPoint, go to File > Help. Look for the full build number (for example, 12.0.xxxx). Compare this build against the fixed builds provided in Microsoft security bulletins for this vulnerability.
    Affected if The build number is lower than the fixed builds listed in the corresponding Microsoft security update for this CVE.
  3. Check for installed Microsoft security updates
    Open Control Panel > Programs and Features, click 'View installed updates' in the left pane. Search for updates related to Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 installed around April 2011 or later (the month this CVE was addressed).
    Affected if No security update specific to this vulnerability (typically part of MS11-021 or related Office security bulletins) is listed as installed.
  4. Identify the Office suite version if PowerPoint is part of a suite
    In Control Panel > Programs and Features, locate the Microsoft Office suite entry (such as Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2007). Note the version and check the Office Update history or installed updates for April 2011 security patches.
    Affected if The Office suite includes PowerPoint 2007 and has not received the April 2011 security updates that address this vulnerability.

A user is affected if PowerPoint 2007 is installed and the corresponding security updates from April 2011 have not been applied, meaning the Office Art container parsing vulnerability can be triggered by opening a crafted malicious PowerPoint file.

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 updates for the affected PowerPoint and Office products (2002 SP3, 2003 SP3, 2007 SP2, Office 2004/2008 for Mac, and related components). Users should avoid opening untrusted PowerPoint files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

Microsoft 365 (recommended) or Office 2021/Office 2019

  1. Upgrade from PowerPoint 2007 to a currently supported Microsoft Office version such as Microsoft 365, Office 2021, or Office 2019
  2. After upgrading, verify the installation by opening PowerPoint and checking the version number under File > Account
  3. Ensure Windows Update or Microsoft Update is enabled to receive future security patches
Caveat Office 2007 reached end of support in 2017 with no security updates; upgrading requires new license and may have feature/interface changes

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

Fix this in Powerpoint Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2011-0976 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