OfficeApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2015-1649

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-04-14

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

NVD · unedited

Use-after-free vulnerability in Microsoft Word 2007 SP3, Office 2010 SP2, Word 2010 SP2, Word Viewer, Office Compatibility Pack SP3, Word Automation Services on SharePoint Server 2010 SP2, and Office Web Apps Server 2010 SP2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted Office document, aka "Microsoft Office Component Use After Free Vulnerability."

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Use-after-free vulnerability in Microsoft Word and Office components (Word 2007 SP3, Office/Word 2010 SP2, Word Viewer, Office Compatibility Pack SP3, SharePoint Server 2010 Word Automation Services, Office Web Apps Server 2010) allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted malicious Office documents.

MitigationApply Microsoft security patches (MS15-033 and subsequent updates) to all affected Office installations; until patches are applied, disable opening of untrusted Office documents and enable Office File Validation as a defense-in-depth measure.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

OfficeApplication

Affected:= 2010

Office Compatibility PackApplication

Affected:all versions

Office Web AppsApplication

Affected:= 2010= 2013

Sharepoint ServerApplication

Affected:= 2010= 2013

WordApplication

Affected:= 2007= 2010= 2013

Word ViewerApplication

Affected:all versions

CVSS breakdown

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?

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

Check Microsoft Word version

Open Word, go to File > Account > About Word, or run 'winword.exe /?' from command line, or check Registry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\WINWORD.EXE

Affected if Version is 2007 SP3, 2010 SP2, 2013, or 2013 SP1 (verify against CVE affected ranges)
Check Microsoft Office suite version

Open any Office app, go to File > Account > About, or check Registry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\Configuration or HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\version\Common\InstallRoot

Affected if Office 2010 (version 14.x), Office 2013 (version 15.x) is installed with vulnerable Word component
Check Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack version

Open Word, go to File > Help, or check Registry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Word\Addins\WPC

Affected if Any version of Compatibility Pack is installed (listed as 'all versions' affected)
Check Microsoft Word Viewer version

Check installed programs in Control Panel, or check Registry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WordViewer

Affected if Word Viewer is installed (all versions affected)
Check SharePoint Server 2010/2013 Word Automation Services

Open SharePoint Central Administration > Application Management > Manage services on server, verify if Word Automation Services is configured

Affected if SharePoint Server 2010 or 2013 with Word Automation Services enabled
Check Office Web Apps Server version

Check installed programs on the server running Office Web Apps, or check: Get-OfficeWebAppsServer cmdlet output

Affected if Office Web Apps Server 2010 or 2013 is installed

Environment is affected if any Word 2007 SP3, Word 2010 SP2, Word 2013/2013 SP1, Office 2010/2013 suite, Office Compatibility Pack, Word Viewer, SharePoint Server 2010/2013 with Word Automation Services, or Office Web Apps Server 2010/2013 is installed and users can open untrusted Office documents.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Remediation

dbcve · scoped

Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime

Mitigation

Apply Microsoft security patches (MS15-033 and subsequent updates) to all affected Office installations; until patches are applied, disable opening of untrusted Office documents and enable Office File Validation as a defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to the latest supported Microsoft Office version (Office 2016/2019/365) or apply MS15-033 security patches for the specific affected product while on supported Service Packs

Identify the specific affected Microsoft Office product from the list (Word 2007, Word 2010, Word 2013, Office 2010, SharePoint Server 2010/2013, Office Web Apps Server, Office Compatibility Pack, or Word Viewer)
Determine the current Service Pack level of the installed product
For Word 2007: Ensure Service Pack 3 is applied, then install MS15-033 security update
For Word 2010: Ensure Service Pack 2 is applied, then install MS15-033 security update
For Word 2013: Install MS15-033 security update or upgrade to a newer version
For Office 2010: Install MS15-033 security update
For SharePoint Server 2010/2013: Apply MS15-033 security updates via Windows Update or Microsoft Update Catalog
For Office Web Apps Server: Apply MS15-033 security updates

Caveat Upgrading between major Office versions may introduce UI changes and require compatibility testing for existing documents and macros

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

Fix this in Office Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation4.0 h
Implementation12.0 h
Testing8.0 h
Review / QA4.0 h

28.0 hours of engineering $4,880

Get help mitigating

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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2015-1649 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2015-1649?

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

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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

At a glance

A fix existsA vendor remedy is published

Severity 9.3 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 23.1%

Affects: Office

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Fix this in Office 28 hrs · Moderate

Typical engagement from $4,880

Get a fix See the full breakdown ↓

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2015-1649 and return a fixed quote and timeline.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Check your environment

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.

Scan for this in your stack

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References