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LibxlsApplication · Libxls Project

CVE-2017-12111

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-11-20
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

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
An exploitable out-of-bounds vulnerability exists in the xls_addCell function of libxls 1.4. A specially crafted XLS file with a formula record can cause memory corruption resulting in remote code execution. An attacker can send a malicious XLS file to trigger this 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 · moderate confidence

An out-of-bounds memory corruption vulnerability exists in the xls_addCell function of libxls 1.4 when parsing specially crafted XLS files containing malformed formula records. The vulnerability allows memory corruption that can be leveraged for remote code execution when a victim opens a malicious XLS file.

MitigationAvoid opening untrusted or unverified XLS files in applications using libxls. Update to patched version of libxls if available. Consider input validation or sandboxing for XLS file processing.

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
LibxlsApplication
Affected:= 1.4

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

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/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. Identify libxls library presence
    Search for libxls library files on the system. On Linux: 'find /usr -name "libxls*" 2>/dev/null' or check package manager: 'dpkg -l | grep libxls' (Debian) or 'rpm -qa | grep libxls' (RHEL). On Windows, check for libxls.dll in application or system directories.
    Affected if libxls library version 1.4 is found on the system
  2. Determine libxls version number
    If libxls is installed, query its version. Use 'pkg-config --modversion libxls' or check the library binary directly: 'strings /path/to/libxls.so* | grep -i version' or review the package metadata from step 1.
    Affected if The installed version is 1.4 (the only version explicitly listed as affected)
  3. Identify applications using libxls
    Check which applications or services are linked against libxls: 'ldd /path/to/application | grep libxls' or 'ldconfig -p | grep libxls'. Review application dependencies if you have access to application documentation or binary analysis tools.
    Affected if Any application using libxls to parse XLS files is present on the system
  4. Confirm XLS file processing capability
    Determine if the identified applications actually process XLS files. Review application configuration, logs, or usage patterns. Check if XLS import/parsing features are enabled in any software using libxls.
    Affected if Software using libxls is configured to accept or process XLS file input from users or external sources
  5. Inspect XLS parsing code path
    If you have access to source code or can observe runtime behavior, verify the xls_addCell function is invoked during XLS parsing. This function handles cell data in XLS worksheets and processes formula records.
    Affected if The vulnerable xls_addCell function processes malformed formula records from untrusted XLS files

You are affected if libxls version 1.4 is installed AND any application on your system uses it to parse XLS files from untrusted sources.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Avoid opening untrusted or unverified XLS files in applications using libxls. Update to patched version of libxls if available. Consider input validation or sandboxing for XLS file processing.

Fix this in Libxls Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2017-12111 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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