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365 AppsApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2022-41063

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-11-09
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
Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution 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

A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Microsoft Excel that allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code on the target system by tricking a user into opening a specially crafted malicious Excel file. This is a client-side vulnerability that typically requires user interaction to trigger.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates for Microsoft Excel through standard patch management processes as soon as updates are released. Educate users to avoid opening untrusted Excel attachments.

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
365 AppsApplication
Affected:all versions
ExcelApplication
Affected:= 2013= 2016
OfficeApplication
Affected:= 2019
Office Long Term Servicing ChannelApplication
Affected:= 2021
Office Online ServerApplication
Affected:all versions
Office Web Apps ServerApplication
Affected:= 2013

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 installed Microsoft Excel version
    Open Excel, go to File > Account > About Excel, or use PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*Excel*'} | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion
    Affected if Version is 2013, 2016, or 2019, or if the product is part of Microsoft 365 Apps, Office LTSC 2021, Office Online Server, or Office Web Apps Server 2013
  2. Verify Microsoft Office product installation
    Check installed Office products via PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*Office*'} | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion
    Affected if Microsoft Office 2013, 2016, 2019, LTSC 2021, or related Office products are installed
  3. Check Office Web Apps Server or Office Online Server version
    If the environment includes SharePoint Server with Office Web Apps or Office Online Server, check the installed version via Programs and Features or the server's version information
    Affected if Office Web Apps Server 2013 or Office Online Server (any version) is deployed
  4. Confirm Excel is the vulnerable component
    Verify that Microsoft Excel is the affected application - this vulnerability specifically targets Excel, not other Office applications
    Affected if Microsoft Excel is the installed application and matches the affected version list

The environment is affected if any version of Microsoft Excel 2013, 2016, or 2019, Microsoft 365 Apps, Office LTSC 2021, Office Online Server, or Office Web Apps Server 2013 is installed and the user can open Excel 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 updates for Microsoft Excel through standard patch management processes as soon as updates are released. Educate users to avoid opening untrusted Excel attachments.

Recommended fix High confidence

November 2022 Security Updates (KB5012171 for Office 2013/2016/2019/2021, or latest Microsoft 365/Office 365 updates)

  1. Open Microsoft Word or any Office application
  2. Go to File > Account > Update Options
  3. Select 'Update Now' to download and install the latest updates
  4. Alternatively, manually download updates from Microsoft Update Catalog: https://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/
  5. Search for and install the November 2022 security updates for your specific Office version
  6. Restart the Office application after updates complete
  7. Verify the update was installed by checking Office version information in File > Account
Caveat Standard Office security update - minimal risk; updates are cumulative and include only security fixes

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

Fix this in 365 Apps Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2022-41063 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