CVE-2026-97752

Summary

A use-after-free vulnerability in Microsoft Office Excel allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code when a malicious file is opened. This occurs when the application accesses memory after it has been freed, potentially leading to remote code execution.

Exploitability

Exploitation requires user interaction via opening a malicious Excel file, making it moderately difficult but achievable through social engineering or phishing campaigns.

Blast radius

If exploited, this vulnerability could allow attackers to execute code on affected systems with the privileges of the user who opened the malicious file, potentially leading to full system compromise.

Detection

No reliable host or network indicator is derivable from the published description.

Prioritized remediation

Deploy Microsoft Security Update KB5042817 for Office 2021 and Office 2024, or upgrade to Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise version 2408 or later.

Analysis generated locally by garnet-coder (no data left the box). AI-assisted — verify against primary sources before acting.