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Office Compatibility PackApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2014-1757

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2014-04-08
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 Word 2007 SP3 and 2010 SP1 and SP2, and Office Compatibility Pack SP3, allocates memory incorrectly for file conversions from a binary (aka .doc) format to a newer format, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted document, aka "Microsoft Office File Format Converter 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 memory corruption vulnerability in Microsoft Word's file format converter. When converting binary .doc files to newer Office formats, the converter incorrectly allocates memory, allowing a specially crafted malicious .doc file to trigger arbitrary code execution.

MitigationApply Microsoft security update MS14-017 (or subsequent cumulative updates containing this fix) to all affected Word installations. Alternatively, disable or block conversion of legacy binary .doc files from untrusted sources until patches are applied.

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
Office Compatibility PackApplication
Affected:all versions
WordApplication
Affected:= 2007= 2010

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 installed Microsoft Word version
    Open Word, go to File > Account > About Word, or run 'winword /?' from command prompt, or check Programs and Features for Microsoft Office installation
    Affected if Version is 2007 or 2010 (exact build numbers vary, but these major versions match the affected range)
  2. Check for Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack
    Open Control Panel > Programs and Features, look for 'Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint' or run: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*Compatibility Pack*'}
    Affected if Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack is installed (any version)
  3. Verify binary .doc conversion feature is available
    Open Word and attempt to open a legacy binary .doc file, or check if the converter service is enabled: look for file converters in Office installation path (e.g., C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OfficeXX\MSWORD.OLB)
    Affected if The Word converter component for binary .doc files is present and functional
  4. Check if system has processed untrusted .doc files
    Review recent file access logs, email attachments, or download folders for .doc files from untrusted sources, or check Outlook mail store for recently opened attachments
    Affected if User has recently opened or converted binary .doc files from untrusted or unknown sources

You are affected if you have Microsoft Word 2007 or 2010, or the Office Compatibility Pack installed, AND the binary .doc file conversion feature is active and has been used with potentially untrusted .doc files.

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 MS14-017 (or subsequent cumulative updates containing this fix) to all affected Word installations. Alternatively, disable or block conversion of legacy binary .doc files from untrusted sources until patches are applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Microsoft Office 2013 or Office 365, or apply April 2014 security updates (MS14-017) for Office 2007/2010

  1. Identify the installed Microsoft Office version and Service Pack level (Word 2007 SP3, Word 2010 SP1/SP2, or Office Compatibility Pack SP3)
  2. Navigate to the Microsoft Security Bulletin MS14-017 (April 8, 2014) at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2014/ms14-017
  3. Download and apply the appropriate security update for your installed version: for Word 2007 use KB2878215, for Word 2010 use KB2878224, for Office Compatibility Pack use KB2878216
  4. Restart the computer after applying the update
  5. Verify the update was installed successfully via Windows Update or by checking the installed updates
Caveat Minimal risk; security updates are routine patches with no expected functionality changes

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

Fix this in Office Compatibility Pack Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2014-1757 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