Skip to content
English

Patch first › Microsoft

Exploited RansomwareCVE from 2017, added in 2021

CVE-2017-0199

Microsoft Office · Office, PDF and utilities

Microsoft Office and WordPad Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

At a glance

Exploited. Added to CISA’s catalog of exploited vulnerabilities on November 3, 2021.

Used in ransomware attacks, according to CISA.

Affected product: Microsoft Office (category Office, PDF and utilities, indicative classification). Name in CISA’s catalog: Microsoft Office and WordPad.

What should I do?

Apply the security update from Microsoft.

Deadline set by CISA for US federal agencies: 181 days (due May 3, 2022). It only binds those agencies, but it is a useful measure of urgency.

Original text of the required action (CISA)

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Timeline

  1. Vulnerability published Publication date (NVD)
  2. Exploitation confirmed Added to CISA’s KEV catalog
  3. CISA deadline Remediation deadline set for US federal agencies

The facts, with their sources

Exploitation confirmed
Yes, on November 3, 2021 Date added to the catalog of exploited vulnerabilities. Exploitation itself may have started earlier. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Ransomware
Known use Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Hunt for compromise
Not requested by CISA Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CISA required action
Apply the security update from Microsoft. Rewritten by this site from CISA’s original text. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CISA deadline
May 3, 2022, 181 days Set for US federal agencies: a measure of urgency, not an obligation elsewhere. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Microsoft patch
Not available Source: Security Update Guide, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Vulnerability published
April 12, 2017 Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 15:00 UTC
Product according to CISA
Microsoft Office and WordPad Filed by this site under “Office, PDF and utilities” (indicative classification). Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Technical detail of the score: attack vector, complexity, impact. Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 15:00 UTC

Severity and activity

7.8 / 10 CVSS severity: high

Score from the NVD. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

— Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS)

FIRST’s EPSS model. Since exploitation is already confirmed, this figure is mostly useful to compare activity. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

Description

Microsoft Office 2007 SP3, Microsoft Office 2010 SP2, Microsoft Office 2013 SP1, Microsoft Office 2016, Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1 allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted document, aka "Microsoft Office/WordPad Remote Code Execution Vulnerability w/Windows API."

Official description from the NVD, collected Sep 29, 2026. CVE® description © The MITRE Corporation.

Microsoft Office and WordPad contain an unspecified vulnerability due to the way the applications parse specially crafted files. Successful exploitation allows for remote code execution.

Summary from CISA (KEV catalog).

CERT-FR advisories

No advisory among the latest CERT-FR publications this site follows. That does not mean there are none.

Information reused under the Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab); the date of last update is shown for each advisory. This site is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by ANSSI.

Sources for this page