Microsoft Excel: Privilege Escalation (CVE-2015-2503)
Published Sources: CVE.org
What is affected, what to do
Microsoft Access 2007 SP3, Excel 2007 SP3, InfoPath 2007 SP3, OneNote 2007 SP3, PowerPoint 2007 SP3, Project 2007 SP3, Publisher 2007 SP3, Visio 2007 SP3, Word 2007 SP3, Office 2007 IME (Japanese) SP3, Access 2010 SP2, Excel 2010 SP2, InfoPath 2010 SP2, OneNote 2010 SP2, PowerPoint 2010 SP2, Project 2010 SP2, Publisher 2010 SP2, Visio 2010 SP2, Word 2010 SP2, Pinyin IME 2010, Access 2013 SP1, Excel 2013 SP1, InfoPath 2013 SP1, OneNote 2013 SP1, PowerPoint 2013 SP1, Project 2013 SP1, Publisher 2013 SP1, Visio 2013 SP1, Word 2013 SP1, Excel 2013 RT SP1, OneNote 2013 RT SP1, PowerPoint 2013 RT SP1, Word 2013 RT SP1, Access 2016, Excel 2016, OneNote 2016, PowerPoint 2016, Project 2016, Publisher 2016, Visio 2016, Word 2016, Skype for Business 2016, and Lync 2013 SP1 allow remote attackers to bypass a sandbox protection mechanism and gain privileges via a crafted web site that is accessed with Internet Explorer, as demonstrated by a transition from Low Integrity to Medium Integrity, aka "Microsoft Office Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
The available sources name no fixed version. Check the vendor guidance in the references below.
- Affected
- Microsoft Access
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft Access
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft Access
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Access
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Excel
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft Excel
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft Excel
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Excel
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft InfoPath
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft InfoPath
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft InfoPath
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Lync
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Office 2007 Input Method Editor (IME) Service Pack 3 Ja
eq sp3..sp3 - Microsoft OneNote
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft OneNote
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft OneNote
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft OneNote
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Pinyin IME
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft PowerPoint
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft PowerPoint
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft PowerPoint
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft PowerPoint
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Project
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft Project
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Project Server
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft Project Server
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Publisher
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft Publisher
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft Publisher
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Publisher
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Skype for Business
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Visio
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft Visio
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft Visio
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Visio
eq 2016..2016 - Microsoft Word
eq 2007..2007 - Microsoft Word
eq 2010..2010 - Microsoft Word
eq 2013..2013 - Microsoft Word
eq 2016..2016
- Microsoft Access
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Metrics
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Priority
No value is available for this vulnerability.
—
CVSS v3
No value is available for this vulnerability.
16.5 %
EPSS score
Elevated — model estimates 10-50% exploitation likelihood.
Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 97.0
Show all metrics
- Severity
- Not rated
Priority (0–325)
The priority score is a consolidated metric that condenses several individual signals into a single, action-guiding ranking: technical severity (CVSS), exploitation likelihood (EPSS), known-exploited status (KEV) and the context of the affected asset. The aim is to answer the only truly important question in vulnerability management: what first?
Read in glossary- 75.26 Methodology
Exploit maturity
An exploit is code or a technique that specifically uses a concrete vulnerability to force unintended behaviour — such as executing code or escalating privileges. It is the tool that turns a theoretical flaw into a practical attack.
Read in glossary- no public PoC known
EPSS score
The EPSS score is the absolute model output for an individual vulnerability: the estimated probability of real-world exploitation within the next 30 days, expressed as a value between 0 and 1 (i.e. 0 % to 100 %). A score of 0.42 means „the model estimates a 42 % chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days“.
Read in glossary- 16.5 %
- Elevated — model estimates 10-50% exploitation likelihood.
EPSS percentile
The EPSS percentile is the relative position of a vulnerability within all EPSS-scored CVEs, expressed as a value between 0 and 1. A percentile of 0.90 means „this CVE has a higher EPSS score than 90 % of all other scored CVEs“. Unlike the EPSS score, it is not a probability — but a positioning within a ranking.
Read in glossary- 97.0
- Critical — this CVE ranks in the top fifth of all CVEs scored today (rank ≥ 80%).
KEV status
The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.
Read in glossary- —
- Published
Detection rules
No NEOSEC detection rule is available for this vulnerability yet.
Classification under NIS2 and CRA
Rule-based classification from exploitation status and severity. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment.
NIS2
NIS2 is EU Directive (EU) 2022/2555 to raise the level of cybersecurity across the Union. It substantially broadens obligations compared with the first NIS directive: more sectors, mandatory risk management, staged reporting duties and personal accountability of senior management.
Read in glossary- Handle the vulnerability in regular vulnerability handling under Art. 21(2)(e) NIS2.
CRA
The CRA is EU Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 setting horizontal cybersecurity requirements for „products with digital elements“ — from industrial controllers and software to connected consumer devices. For the first time manufacturers must ensure security across the entire product lifecycle, handle vulnerabilities and provide security updates.
Read in glossary- From 11.12.2027, Annex I Part II CRA requires manufacturers of affected products with digital elements to handle vulnerabilities without delay and provide security updates.
ISO/IEC 27001
ISO/IEC 27001 is the internationally leading standard for an information security management system (ISMS). It describes a risk-based, process-oriented framework to systematically plan, implement, review and improve information security.
Read in glossary- Control A.8.8, management of technical vulnerabilities: assess relevance to your systems, plan remediation and keep evidence.
Description
Microsoft Access 2007 SP3, Excel 2007 SP3, InfoPath 2007 SP3, OneNote 2007 SP3, PowerPoint 2007 SP3, Project 2007 SP3, Publisher 2007 SP3, Visio 2007 SP3, Word 2007 SP3, Office 2007 IME (Japanese) SP3, Access 2010 SP2, Excel 2010 SP2, InfoPath 2010 SP2, OneNote 2010 SP2, PowerPoint 2010 SP2, Project 2010 SP2, Publisher 2010 SP2, Visio 2010 SP2, Word 2010 SP2, Pinyin IME 2010, Access 2013 SP1, Excel 2013 SP1, InfoPath 2013 SP1, OneNote 2013 SP1, PowerPoint 2013 SP1, Project 2013 SP1, Publisher 2013 SP1, Visio 2013 SP1, Word 2013 SP1, Excel 2013 RT SP1, OneNote 2013 RT SP1, PowerPoint 2013 RT SP1, Word 2013 RT SP1, Access 2016, Excel 2016, OneNote 2016, PowerPoint 2016, Project 2016, Publisher 2016, Visio 2016, Word 2016, Skype for Business 2016, and Lync 2013 SP1 allow remote attackers to bypass a sandbox protection mechanism and gain privileges via a crafted web site that is accessed with Internet Explorer, as demonstrated by a transition from Low Integrity to Medium Integrity, aka "Microsoft Office Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability."
Source: cvelistv5, NVD (NIST)
Affected products
The following versions are affected. Older releases of the same product line are also vulnerable unless stated otherwise.
| Affected versions | Fixed in | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| microsoft | access |
|
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| microsoft | excel |
|
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| microsoft | infopath |
|
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| microsoft | lync |
|
|
| microsoft | office_2007_ime |
|
|
| microsoft | onenote |
|
|
| microsoft | pinyin_ime |
|
|
| microsoft | powerpoint |
|
|
| microsoft | project |
|
|
| microsoft | project_server |
|
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| microsoft | publisher |
|
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| microsoft | skype_for_business |
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| microsoft | visio |
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| microsoft | word |
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Vendors and products
- Microsoft Microsoft Access
- Microsoft Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Microsoft Infopath
- Microsoft Microsoft Lync Server
- Microsoft Microsoft OneNote
- Microsoft Microsoft Pinyin IME
- Microsoft Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Microsoft Project
- Microsoft Microsoft SharePoint
- Microsoft Microsoft Publisher
- Microsoft Microsoft Skype for Business
- Microsoft Microsoft Visio
References & sources
- securitytracker.com1034117Vulnerability database, x_refsource_SECTRACK, Third-party advisory, Vulnerability database
- securitytracker.com1034122Vulnerability database, x_refsource_SECTRACK, Third-party advisory, Vulnerability database
- docs.microsoft.comMS15-116Vendor advisory, x_refsource_MS
- securitytracker.com1034119Vulnerability database, x_refsource_SECTRACK, Third-party advisory, Vulnerability database
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<a href="https://intel.neosec.eu/en/cve/CVE-2015-2503"><img src="https://intel.neosec.eu/badge/cve/CVE-2015-2503.svg?lang=en" alt="CVE-2015-2503 – NEOSEC Intel" height="20"></a>