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ExcelApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2011-0980

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 Excel 2002 SP3 and 2003 SP3, Office 2004 and 2008 for Mac, and Open XML File Format Converter for Mac do not properly parse Office Art objects, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via vectors related to a function pointer, aka "Excel Dangling Pointer 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 dangling pointer vulnerability in Microsoft Excel's parsing of Office Art objects. The improper handling allows an attacker to manipulate function pointers, leading to arbitrary code execution when a specially crafted Excel file is opened.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates for the affected Excel and Office versions. Until patched, restrict opening Excel files from untrusted sources and consider disabling Office Art rendering in enterprise environments.

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
ExcelApplication
Affected:= 2002= 2003
OfficeApplication
Affected:= 2004= 2008
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. Check Microsoft Excel version
    Open Excel, go to Help > About Microsoft Excel, or check the installed programs list in Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features
    Affected if Version is 2002 or 2003 (exact versions, no service pack level specified)
  2. Check Microsoft Office version
    Open any Office application, go to Help > About, or check Programs and Features in Control Panel
    Affected if Version is 2004 or 2008 (for Mac - exact versions without service packs)
  3. Check for Microsoft Open XML File Format Converter
    Check installed programs in Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or check Applications folder on Mac
    Affected if Any version of Open XML File Format Converter is installed (all versions are affected)
  4. Verify Office Art functionality is present
    Office Art is a core component of Excel's file parsing - check that Excel can open and render spreadsheet files containing graphics, shapes, or embedded objects
    Affected if Excel can open files with Office Art objects (graphics, shapes, SmartArt) - the vulnerability triggers when parsing these objects in specially crafted files

A user is affected if they have Microsoft Excel 2002/2003, Microsoft Office 2004/2008, or any version of Open XML File Format Converter installed, and use Excel to open files that may contain Office Art objects.

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 Excel and Office versions. Until patched, restrict opening Excel files from untrusted sources and consider disabling Office Art rendering in enterprise environments.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Upgrade to Microsoft Office 2010 or later (Windows) or Office 2011/2016 for Mac (or Microsoft 365 subscription) which include security fixes for this and subsequent vulnerabilities

  1. 1. Identify all affected systems with Excel 2002, Excel 2003, Office 2004 for Mac, Office 2008 for Mac, or Open XML File Format Converter installed
  2. 2. Disconnect affected systems from the network if immediate exploitation is suspected
  3. 3. For Windows systems: Run Windows Update or Microsoft Update to check for and apply MS11-012 (or subsequent security bulletins) which addresses this vulnerability
  4. 4. For Mac systems: Check for and install any available Microsoft AutoUpdate patches for Office 2004/2008 for Mac
  5. 5. If patches are unavailable for these legacy products, consider upgrading to a supported version of Microsoft Office (Office 2010 or later, or Microsoft 365)
  6. 6. After patching or upgrading, verify the fix by confirming the Office Art object parsing no longer triggers the vulnerable code path
  7. 7. Monitor vendor advisories for any further updates
Caveat Legacy file format compatibility may be affected when upgrading Office versions; some older macros or add-ins may require updates

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

Fix this in Excel Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
36.0 hours of engineering $6,400
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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-2011-0980 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