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Microsoft Word CVE-2026-88210

| EUVDEUVD-2026-100189 HIGH
Reliance on Untrusted Inputs in a Security Decision (CWE-807)
2026-10-13 secure@microsoft.com GHSA-c4gf-5hr6-cjpp
7.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: microsoft
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Craft malicious Word document
  2. Delivery
    Deliver via email or download link
  3. Exploit
    Victim opens file in Microsoft Word
  4. Execution
    Untrusted input bypasses security decision
  5. Impact
    Compromise user context (C/I/A high)

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2025 - Insecure Design
ASVS 5.0
V2 - Validation and Business Logic Trusted input validation
Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires the victim to open an attacker-crafted Microsoft Word document on the local system (AV:L, UI:R); no authentication or prior privileges are needed (PR:N). The bypass hinges on Word relying on attacker-controlled untrusted input when making a security decision (CWE-807), so the malicious file must embed the crafted input that subverts that control. The primary limiting factor is the mandatory user interaction - the attack fails unless the target actually opens the document - which constrains it to social-engineering/lure delivery rather than unattended remote compromise; Protected View or similar document-handling hardening may further reduce real-world success.

Impact

The CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) describes a local, low-complexity security-feature bypass that needs no privileges but does require user interaction - the classic 'victim opens a malicious document' profile for Office client flaws (CWE-807, reliance on untrusted inputs in a security decision). No EPSS score, KEV listing, SSVC decision, or POC indicator was supplied in the input, so there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no evidence of active exploitation. Real-world priority is driven primarily by the ubiquity of Microsoft Word and the ease with which document-borne lures are delivered, not by confirmed exploitation signals. This is a genuine patch-soon issue because of product reach and the high C/I/A impacts, but absent EPSS/KEV/POC data it is not yet demonstrably weaponized - treat as high-priority-by-footprint rather than confirmed-under-attack. Note the local vector (AV:L) combined with UI:R meaningfully limits mass exploitation compared to a remote network bug.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker crafts a malicious Word document that supplies untrusted input to a security decision, then delivers it via email attachment or download. When the victim opens the file in Word (UI:R), the security feature is bypassed, yielding high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact in the user's context. No public exploit code is identified in the provided data.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.4% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 13, 2026

A security-feature bypass in Microsoft Word allows an attacker-crafted document to subvert an Office security decision when the file is opened on the local machine, rated CVSS 3.1 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) with high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact. No privileges or authentication are required, but the attacker depends entirely on convincing the victim to open the malicious document, so delivery is social-engineering based rather than unattended. This is tracked as CWE-807 (reliance on untrusted inputs in a security decision) and EUVD-2026-100189; no public exploit identified at time of analysis, and Microsoft has published a fix (patch available per vendor advisory).

RemediationAI

Patch status is vendor-released; Microsoft published a fix for this issue (patch available per vendor advisory), so the primary action is to apply the current Office security update from the Microsoft Update Guide at https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-88210. For Microsoft Office LTSC 2024, the fixed build identified in the affected-version data is 16.0.17932.21056 - upgrade to that build or later; for Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise, apply the current channel release listed at https://aka.ms/OfficeSecurityReleases, and for the macOS products (Microsoft Office 365 for Mac 1.0.0, Office LTSC for Mac 2024 16.0.0, Office LTSC for Mac 2021 16.0.1) apply the corrected versions once published in the same advisory. Until every client is updated, compensating controls should target the user-interaction prerequisite (UI:R) and the untrusted-input path: keep Protected View and, where licensed, Application Guard for Office enabled for documents originating from the internet, email attachments, and untrusted network locations, and block those file types at mail and web gateways - the trade-off is that Protected View forces users through an extra 'Enable Editing' step and Application Guard opens files in an isolated container where some add-ins and macros will not function, generating helpdesk friction. Additionally, restrict execution of embedded content and ActiveX/macro objects from untrusted documents via Group Policy, which reduces the impact of a successful decision bypass but may break legitimate line-of-business documents that rely on those components. Note the residual limitation: because the flaw is a logic-level trust bypass rather than a missing user prompt, these controls reduce exposure but do not fully substitute for installing the vendor update.

Affected VersionsENISA

Microsoft Office LTSC 2024 16.0.0 <16.0.17932.21056
Microsoft Office 365 for Mac 1.0.0 <publication
Microsoft Office LTSC for Mac 2024 16.0.0 <publication
Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise 16.0.1 <https://aka.ms/OfficeSecurityReleases
Microsoft Office LTSC for Mac 2021 16.0.1 <publication

Affected Packages

euvd microsoft_office_ltsc_2024 fix: 16.0.17932.21056

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

The root cause is CWE-807: Word makes a trust/security decision using data taken from the document itself, so attacker-controlled content inside the file can influence an outcome the application is supposed to decide safely. In Office client terms this class covers logic such as Protected View / trust determination, embedded-object or macro handling, and file-format parsing gates, where a crafted input causes the control to resolve in the attacker's favor instead of quarantining or restricting the content. The assessed vector CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H confirms the attack is local to the victim's session (no network vector, no privileges, PR:N) but requires mandatory user interaction (UI:R), and impact stays within a single security scope (S:U) while being high across confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Because the bypass is a logic/trust failure rather than a memory-safety bug, the reliable exploit surface is the document content itself: the victim must open the file for the subverted decision to take effect, which is why Office document hardening and Protected View behavior are the key environmental factors. Vendor attribution is Microsoft (secure@microsoft.com), and the tracked affected codebase is the Word/Office client on Windows and macOS.

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Severity by source

Vendor (microsoft) PRIMARY 7.8 HIGH
AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 7.8 HIGH

Attack is document-borne and requires the victim to open the file locally, so AV:L and UI:R with PR:N; no privileges needed and full high impact in user context.

3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (microsoft).

CVSS VectorVendor: microsoft

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

2
Patch available
Oct 13, 2026 - 20:20 EUVD
CVE Published
Oct 13, 2026 - 19:21 nvd
HIGH 7.8

DescriptionCVE.org

Reliance on untrusted inputs in a security decision in Microsoft Office Word allows an unauthorized attacker to bypass a security feature locally.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

Microsoft Word users are exposed to a high-severity security feature bypass (CVE-2026-88210) that can be triggered by opening a malicious document, potentially leading to full compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability on the local machine. With no public exploit identified at time of analysis and a patch available per vendor advisory, the primary risk is to organizations that have not yet applied Microsoft's fix, as successful exploitation requires only user interaction and no authentication. Leadership should prioritize patching to prevent social-engineering attacks that could result in data theft or operational disruption.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.4%
Top 65% exploitable
Prevalence
Ubiquitous
Microsoft Word is installed across a huge fraction of enterprise and consumer endpoints
Vendor Status
Publicly Disclosed:No
Exploited:No
Latest Software Release:Exploitation Less Likely
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.4%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

39
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +39
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.

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