dbcve.org
ExcelApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2011-1987

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-09-15
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
Array index error in Microsoft Excel 2003 SP3 and 2007 SP2; Excel in Office 2007 SP2; Excel 2010 Gold and SP1; Excel in Office 2010 Gold and SP1; Office 2004, 2008, and 2011 for Mac; Open XML File Format Converter for Mac; Excel Viewer SP2; and Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats SP2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted spreadsheet, aka "Excel Out of Bounds Array Indexing 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 an array index out-of-bounds vulnerability in Microsoft Excel that allows remote code execution when users open specially crafted .xlsx spreadsheet files. The vulnerability stems from improper bounds checking during Excel file parsing, enabling memory corruption that can be leveraged for arbitrary code execution.

MitigationApply Microsoft security update MS11-072 to all affected Excel installations and office suites. Users should avoid opening Excel files from untrusted or 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
ExcelApplication
Affected:= 2003= 2007= 2010
Excel ViewerApplication
Affected:all versions
OfficeApplication
Affected:= 2004= 2007= 2008= 2010= 2011
Office Compatibility PackApplication
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 Excel version
    Open Excel application, navigate to File > Help to view version information. On Windows, also check Programs and Features for Microsoft Excel entries.
    Affected if Excel version is 2003, 2007, or 2010 and MS11-072 security update has not been applied
  2. Identify installed Microsoft Office version
    On Windows, open Programs and Features to list Microsoft Office installations. On Mac, check /Applications folder for Microsoft Office applications.
    Affected if Office version is 2004, 2007, 2008, 2010, or 2011 without MS11-072 applied
  3. Check for Microsoft Excel Viewer
    Search the system for Excel Viewer installation. On Windows, check Add/Remove Programs. On Mac, check the Applications folder for Excel Viewer.
    Affected if Excel Viewer is present on the system (all versions affected)
  4. Check for Office Compatibility Pack
    Review installed programs for Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint File Formats.
    Affected if Office Compatibility Pack version 2007 is installed without MS11-072 applied
  5. Check for Open Xml File Format Converter
    Search for Microsoft Open Xml File Format Converter in installed applications.
    Affected if Open Xml File Format Converter is installed (all versions affected)

The environment is affected if any Microsoft Excel, Office suite, Excel Viewer, Office Compatibility Pack 2007, or Open Xml File Format Converter version listed above is present without the MS11-072 security update applied.

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 update MS11-072 to all affected Excel installations and office suites. Users should avoid opening Excel files from untrusted or unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

Microsoft Security Bulletin MS11-072 patches: Excel 2003 SP3 (KB2553072), Excel 2007 SP2 (KB2553073), Excel 2010 (KB2553150), Excel Viewer SP2 (KB2553101), Office Compatibility Pack SP2 (KB2553074), Office 2004/2008/2011 for Mac via respective Security Updates

  1. Navigate to Microsoft Security Bulletin MS11-072 (September 2011) at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2011/ms11-072
  2. Identify your specific Microsoft Excel or Office product version from the 'Affected Software' table in the bulletin
  3. Download the appropriate security update for your product version (e.g., KB2553072 for Excel 2003, KB2553073 for Excel 2007, KB2553150 for Excel 2010)
  4. Run the downloaded installer and follow the prompts to apply the security update
  5. Restart any Microsoft Office applications after the update completes
  6. Verify the update was installed by checking 'View Updates' in Windows Update or using the program's About dialog
Caveat This is a security patch with no expected breaking changes; it only addresses the vulnerability and does not change product functionality

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

Fix this in Excel Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2011-1987 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