CVE-2011-3260
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 OfficeImport in Apple iOS before 5 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted Microsoft Word document.
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 confidenceBuffer overflow vulnerability in Apple's OfficeImport component in iOS versions prior to 5. The overflow occurs when parsing crafted Microsoft Word documents, allowing remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or crash the application.
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= 3.0= 3.1= 3.1.2= 3.1.3= 3.2= 3.2.1= 3.2.2= 4.0= 4.0.1= 4.0.2= 4.1= 4.2.1CVSS 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
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
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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Determine iOS versionNavigate to Settings > General > About > Version on the iOS device, or use iTunes to check the iOS version of a connected deviceAffected if The iOS version is 3.0, 3.1, 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 3.2, 3.2.1, 3.2.2, 4.0, 4.0.1, 4.0.2, 4.1, or 4.2.1 (these are the specific versions listed as affected)
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Verify OfficeImport is presentThe OfficeImport component is built into iOS and handles Microsoft Word document parsing in Mail, Safari, and third-party apps that open Word attachments; attempt to open any Word document in one of these apps to confirm the component is availableAffected if The OfficeImport component is present (it is included by default in all affected iOS versions listed above)
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Identify attack vector exposureCheck if the iOS device receives Word documents via email, Safari downloads, or third-party apps that process Word filesAffected if The device processes Word documents from any source (the vulnerability is triggered when parsing crafted Microsoft Word documents)
The device is affected if it runs any iOS version from 3.0 through 4.2.1 and can parse Word documents through the built-in OfficeImport component.
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.
From vendor dataUpgrade affected iOS devices to version 5 or later to obtain the patched OfficeImport component. Avoid opening untrusted Microsoft Word documents from unknown sources.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-3260 — 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-2011-3260 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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- 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