CVE-2018-8281

A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Microsoft Office software when the software fails to properly handle objects in memory, aka "Microsoft Office Remote Code Execution Vulnerability." This affects Microsoft Excel Viewer, Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office Word Viewer.

Published: 2018-07-11 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2018-8281 is rated Moderate Risk (59.8/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 24.57%, 96th percentile). EPSS ranks this CVE among the most likely to be exploited in the near term. High exploitation likelihood—assess exposure and prioritize remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2018-8281

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-04-18 29.76% 24.57% -5.19%
2 2026-03-16 45.61% 29.76% -15.85%
3 2026-01-25 — 45.61% —

Full EPSS history (43 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2018-8281

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.8 3.0 HIGH
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:R)
A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 5.9 [email protected]
9.3 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 8.6 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2018-8281

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2018-8281

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
microsoft office 2016 cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office:2016:*:*:*:*:mac_os:*:*
microsoft office 2016 cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office:2016:*:*:*:click-to-run:*:*:*
microsoft office_compatibility_pack — cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office_compatibility_pack:-:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft office_powerpoint_viewer — cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office_powerpoint_viewer:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft office_word_viewer — cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office_word_viewer:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2018-8281

cvelogic Threat Intelligence