Untrusted Search Path in Microsoft Office - CVE-2012-1854
Published: January 10, 2017 / Updated: April 13, 2026
Vulnerability identifier: #VU4087
CSH Severity: Critical
CVSS v4: 8.4 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N]
CVE-ID: CVE-2012-1854
CWE-ID: CWE-426
Exploitation vector: Remote access
Exploit availability:
The vulnerability is being exploited in the wild
Vulnerability details
The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the target system.
The vulnerability exists due to the way Microsoft Office loads .dll libraries when opening Office documents (such as a .docx file). A remote attacker can place a specially crafted .dll file along with Microsoft Office document on a remote SMB or WebDAV share, trick the victim into opening that document and execute arbitrary code on the target system with privileges of the current user.
Successful exploitation of the vulnerability may allow an attacker to compromise vulnerable system.
Note: the vulnerability was being actively exploited.
The vulnerability exists due to the way Microsoft Office loads .dll libraries when opening Office documents (such as a .docx file). A remote attacker can place a specially crafted .dll file along with Microsoft Office document on a remote SMB or WebDAV share, trick the victim into opening that document and execute arbitrary code on the target system with privileges of the current user.
Successful exploitation of the vulnerability may allow an attacker to compromise vulnerable system.
Note: the vulnerability was being actively exploited.
Affected software
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Windows
Windows Server
Microsoft Windows
Windows Server
How to mitigate CVE-2012-1854
Install update from vendor's website.