dbcve.org
LibxlsApplication · Libxls Project

CVE-2017-2897

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 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 write vulnerability exists in the read_MSAT function of libxls 1.4. A specially crafted XLS file can cause a memory corruption resulting in remote code execution. An attacker can send 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 write vulnerability exists in the read_MSAT function of libxls 1.4 library when parsing specially crafted XLS files. The lack of proper bounds checking allows memory corruption that can lead to remote code execution.

MitigationUsers should avoid opening untrusted XLS files and update to a patched version of libxls once available. Input validation and sandboxing can provide additional protection layers.

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:= 1.4.0

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:3.1/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 installation
    Run 'pkg-config --modversion libxls' or check for libxls files in /usr/lib/, /usr/local/lib/, or similar directories. If building from source, check the version.h or configure.ac file.
    Affected if The installed version is 1.4.0
  2. Check for linked libxls in applications
    Use 'ldd' on suspected binaries or 'ldconfig -p | grep libxls' to find if any applications have libxls linked.
    Affected if Any application is linked to libxls version 1.4.0
  3. Verify XLS file processing capability
    Identify applications or services that accept or process .xls spreadsheet files. Check documentation or binary analysis for libxls usage.
    Affected if An application processes XLS files using the vulnerable libxls library
  4. Confirm read_MSAT function presence
    Run 'nm libxls.so | grep read_MSAT' or 'objdump -T libxls.so | grep read_MSAT' on the library binary.
    Affected if The read_MSAT function is present in the libxls library in use

A user is affected if they have libxls version 1.4.0 installed or linked to any application that processes XLS 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.

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

Users should avoid opening untrusted XLS files and update to a patched version of libxls once available. Input validation and sandboxing can provide additional protection layers.

Fix this in Libxls Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,120
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,992.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-2897 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2017-2897 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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