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365 AppsApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2025-59238

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-10-14
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
Use after free in Microsoft Office PowerPoint allows an unauthorized attacker to execute code locally.

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 use-after-free vulnerability in Microsoft Office PowerPoint where the application continues to use a memory pointer after it has been freed. An unauthenticated attacker can exploit this to execute arbitrary code locally on the targeted system by crafting a malicious PowerPoint file.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates for Office immediately. Ensure Microsoft Office is updated to the latest patched version via Windows Update or enterprise patch management systems.

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
OfficeApplication
Affected:= 2019
Office Long Term Servicing ChannelApplication
Affected:= 2021= 2024
PowerpointApplication
Affected:= 2016

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. Verify PowerPoint is installed
    Open PowerPoint and go to File > Account, or check Programs and Features for Microsoft Office or Microsoft PowerPoint
    Affected if PowerPoint is not installed on the system
  2. Identify installed PowerPoint or Office version
    In PowerPoint, go to File > Account > About PowerPoint to see the exact version number (such as 16.0.xxxxx.xxxx for Office 2016/2019/2021 or a subscription version for Microsoft 365)
    Affected if Version cannot be determined or does not match any known Office installation
  3. Determine if running Microsoft 365 Apps
    In PowerPoint, go to File > Account. If it shows a Microsoft 365 subscription status (such as 'Subscription Product' or shows an update channel like Monthly Enterprise or Semi-Annual), this indicates Microsoft 365 Apps
    Affected if Running Microsoft 365 Apps with any subscription status means the environment is within scope
  4. Compare installed version to affected ranges
    Check if the installed version matches: PowerPoint 2016 (16.0.x), Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, Office LTSC 2024, or any Microsoft 365 Apps version. These specific versions and all Microsoft 365 versions are affected according to the CVE
    Affected if Installed version is Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, Office LTSC 2024, PowerPoint 2016, or any Microsoft 365 Apps version
  5. Confirm vulnerability exposure through file handling
    The vulnerability triggers when opening a specially crafted malicious PowerPoint (.pptx) file. No additional configuration or feature needs to be enabled for the flaw to apply - it is a memory handling issue in PowerPoint's file processing
    Affected if User can open untrusted PowerPoint files from external sources without additional hardening in place

A system is affected if it has any version of Microsoft PowerPoint 2016, Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, Office LTSC 2024, or Microsoft 365 Apps installed, and the user can open PowerPoint 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 Office immediately. Ensure Microsoft Office is updated to the latest patched version via Windows Update or enterprise patch management systems.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Microsoft 365 Apps: Update to latest version via Click-to-Run; Office 2019/2021/LTSC: Install latest cumulative update from Microsoft Update Catalog

  1. Check Microsoft Update Catalog or your organization's software distribution center for the latest Microsoft Office security updates
  2. Open PowerPoint and navigate to File > Account > Update Options > Update Now to check for available updates
  3. Alternatively, open any Office application, go to File > Account > Update Office to trigger an immediate update check
  4. If automatic updates are enabled, ensure they are running and patch KB5555555 (placeholder example - verify actual KB number from MSRC) is installed
  5. For enterprise deployments, verify through Microsoft Endpoint Manager or WSUS that CVE-2025-59238 patch is deployed
Caveat Standard Office updates typically have no breaking changes; test macro-enabled presentations after applying security updates

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
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,780
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,848.

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-2025-59238 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