CVE-2024-38226 Microsoft Publisher: security feature bypass
In plain words: A built-in safety check — like a warning before opening a downloaded file — can be skipped. Makes other attacks, like malicious downloads, work without the usual warning.
Confirmed exploited by CISA on · US federal patch deadline Oct 1, 2024
What to do
- Install Microsoft's security update for Publisher. If no update exists, follow the vendor's workaround or stop using the product until one ships.
- Keep a list of every internet-facing server you run so nothing is forgotten.
- Patch anything in this catalog first, ahead of normal patch cycles.
- Put admin and file-transfer apps behind a VPN or single sign-on instead of the open internet.
Who is affected
Work IT. Aimed mostly at company systems — you are affected through the companies you use, not your own phone.
What's at risk: Mass data theft and ransomware: a single flaw in a file-transfer or email server has exposed thousands of organisations at once.
The details
- Official name
- Microsoft Publisher Protection Mechanism Failure Vulnerability
- Product
- Microsoft Publisher
- CISA description
- Microsoft Publisher contains a protection mechanism failure vulnerability that allows attacker to bypass Office macro policies used to block untrusted or malicious files.
- Type of flaw
- Security feature bypass (CWE-693)
- Confirmed exploited
- Sep 10, 2024
- US federal patch deadline
- Oct 1, 2024
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Answering about CVE-2024-38226 ·
Questions about CVE-2024-38226
Is CVE-2024-38226 being exploited?
Yes. CISA added CVE-2024-38226 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on Sep 10, 2024, which means there is reliable evidence of real-world attacks.
How do I fix CVE-2024-38226?
Install Microsoft's security update for Publisher. If no update exists, follow the vendor's workaround or stop using the product until one ships. Keep a list of every internet-facing server you run so nothing is forgotten.
Am I affected by CVE-2024-38226?
Only if you use Microsoft Publisher. Aimed mostly at company systems — you are affected through the companies you use, not your own phone.