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Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 24 Mar 2022.
Internet ExplorerApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2013-3897

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2013-10-09
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild High EPSS Remotely reachable No privileges Patch available

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
Use-after-free vulnerability in the CDisplayPointer class in mshtml.dll in Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 through 11 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via crafted JavaScript code that uses the onpropertychange event handler, as exploited in the wild in September and October 2013, aka "Internet Explorer Memory Corruption 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

Use-after-free vulnerability in the CDisplayPointer class in mshtml.dll in Internet Explorer 6 through 11 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted JavaScript that manipulates the onpropertychange event handler, causing memory corruption. This was actively exploited in the wild in 2013.

MitigationApply Microsoft security update MS13-080 (or subsequent cumulative updates) to patch the vulnerability in mshtml.dll. Alternatively, disable JavaScript execution in Internet Explorer or migrate to a modern, supported browser as a long-term mitigation.

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
Internet ExplorerApplication
Affected:= 6= 7= 8= 9= 10= 11

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
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 if Internet Explorer is installed
    Open Command Prompt and run: reg query 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer' /v Version
    Affected if The registry key exists and returns a version value
  2. Determine the installed Internet Explorer version
    Review the version output from the previous check - versions 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 are all affected
    Affected if The reported version corresponds to Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or 11
  3. Locate and identify mshtml.dll version
    Find mshtml.dll in the Internet Explorer folder (typically C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer or C:\Program Files (x86)\Internet Explorer) and check its file version properties
    Affected if mshtml.dll exists and is from an unpatched Internet Explorer installation (versions 6-11)
  4. Verify the onpropertychange event handler capability
    This is a native IE event handler that exists by default in Internet Explorer versions 6-11 - no configuration check needed as it is always present in affected versions
    Affected if Internet Explorer is running with JavaScript enabled and the onpropertychange event handler is available (default state in affected versions)

If Internet Explorer versions 6 through 11 are installed and unpatched, the environment is vulnerable to this CVE.

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
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Vendor patch docs.microsoft.com →
Interim mitigation

Apply Microsoft security update MS13-080 (or subsequent cumulative updates) to patch the vulnerability in mshtml.dll. Alternatively, disable JavaScript execution in Internet Explorer or migrate to a modern, supported browser as a long-term mitigation.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Windows 10 or Windows 11 with Microsoft Edge (Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 7/8.1 with latest cumulative updates)

  1. Upgrade to a supported Windows version with updated Internet Explorer or Microsoft Edge
  2. Ensure Windows Update is enabled and install all cumulative security updates
  3. Verify that Internet Explorer 11 or Microsoft Edge is the default browser for user-facing activities
  4. Disable or restrict the onpropertychange event handler through Enhanced Protected Mode in Internet Explorer if upgrade is not immediately possible
  5. Deploy the Microsoft security update for this vulnerability through your patch management system
Caveat Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 7/8.1 requires enabling EMET or Enhanced Protected Mode; some legacy ActiveX controls may not function in modern browsers

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

Fix this in Internet Explorer Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
Get it fixed fast

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-3897 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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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-2013-3897 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