Known Exploited Vulnerability
8.8
HIGH
CVE-2021-40444
Microsoft MSHTML Remote Code Execution Vulnerabili - [Actively Exploited]
Description

<p>Microsoft is investigating reports of a remote code execution vulnerability in MSHTML that affects Microsoft Windows. Microsoft is aware of targeted attacks that attempt to exploit this vulnerability by using specially-crafted Microsoft Office documents.</p> <p>An attacker could craft a malicious ActiveX control to be used by a Microsoft Office document that hosts the browser rendering engine. The attacker would then have to convince the user to open the malicious document. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.</p> <p>Microsoft Defender Antivirus and Microsoft Defender for Endpoint both provide detection and protections for the known vulnerability. Customers should keep antimalware products up to date. Customers who utilize automatic updates do not need to take additional action. Enterprise customers who manage updates should select the detection build 1.349.22.0 or newer and deploy it across their environments. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint alerts will be displayed as: “Suspicious Cpl File Execution”.</p> <p>Upon completion of this investigation, Microsoft will take the appropriate action to help protect our customers. This may include providing a security update through our monthly release process or providing an out-of-cycle security update, depending on customer needs.</p> <p>Please see the <strong>Mitigations</strong> and <strong>Workaround</strong> sections for important information about steps you can take to protect your system from this vulnerability.</p> <p><strong>UPDATE</strong> September 14, 2021: Microsoft has released security updates to address this vulnerability. Please see the Security Updates table for the applicable update for your system. We recommend that you install these updates immediately. Please see the FAQ for important information about which updates are applicable to your system.</p>

INFO

Published Date :

Sept. 15, 2021, 12:15 p.m.

Last Modified :

Nov. 21, 2024, 6:24 a.m.

Source :

[email protected]

Remotely Exploitable :

Yes !

Impact Score :

5.3

Exploitability Score :

2.8
CISA Notification
CISA KEV (Known Exploited Vulnerabilities)

For the benefit of the cybersecurity community and network defenders—and to help every organization better manage vulnerabilities and keep pace with threat activity—CISA maintains the authoritative source of vulnerabilities that have been exploited in the wild.

Description :

Microsoft MSHTML contains a unspecified vulnerability that allows for remote code execution.

Required Action :

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Notes :

https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-40444

Public PoC/Exploit Available at Github

CVE-2021-40444 has a 122 public PoC/Exploit available at Github. Go to the Public Exploits tab to see the list.

Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2021-40444 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Microsoft windows_10
2 Microsoft windows_7
3 Microsoft windows_8.1
4 Microsoft windows_rt_8.1
5 Microsoft windows_server_2008
6 Microsoft windows_server_2012
7 Microsoft windows_server_2016
8 Microsoft windows_server_2019
9 Microsoft windows_10_1607
10 Microsoft windows_10_1809
11 Microsoft windows_10_20h2
12 Microsoft windows_server_2022
13 Microsoft windows_10_1507
14 Microsoft windows_10_21h1
15 Microsoft windows_10_1909
16 Microsoft windows_server_20h2
17 Microsoft windows_10_2004
18 Microsoft windows_server_2004
19 Microsoft windows_server_2012_r2
20 Microsoft windows_server_2008_r2
21 Microsoft windows_server_2008_sp2
: Total Affected Vendor : 1 | Products : 21
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools

Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to CVE-2021-40444.

URL Resource
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/165214/Microsoft-Office-Word-MSHTML-Remote-Code-Execution.html Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167317/Microsoft-Office-MSDT-Follina-Proof-Of-Concept.html Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2021-40444 Mitigation Patch Vendor Advisory
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/165214/Microsoft-Office-Word-MSHTML-Remote-Code-Execution.html Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167317/Microsoft-Office-MSDT-Follina-Proof-Of-Concept.html Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2021-40444 Mitigation Patch Vendor Advisory

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Profile Photo
BigBuildBench/decalage2_oletools

None

Batchfile VBA Python HTML

Updated: 1 month ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Nov. 21, 2024, 5:27 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
willgmaz/publications

Blogs/Talks

Updated: 2 months, 2 weeks ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Oct. 2, 2024, 7:23 p.m. This repo has been linked 4 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
BigBuildBench/decalage2_oletools

None

Batchfile VBA Python HTML

Updated: 2 months, 4 weeks ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Sept. 23, 2024, 8:52 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
basim-ahmad/Follina-CVE-and-CVE-2021-40444

This repository contains scripts and resources for exploiting the Follina CVE and CVE-2021-40444 vulnerabilities in Microsoft Office. The scripts generate malicious document files that can execute arbitrary code on the target system.

Python Batchfile HTML JavaScript PowerShell VBScript

Updated: 4 months, 3 weeks ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : July 28, 2024, 5:23 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
skitkat/CVE-2021-40444-POC

For learning purpose did a complete analysis on CVE-2021-40444 POC (proof of concept)

Rust HTML

Updated: 5 months, 1 week ago
0 stars 1 fork 1 watcher
Born at : June 14, 2024, 7:04 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
Cruxer8Mech/Idk

None

Updated: 6 months, 3 weeks ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : May 26, 2024, 1:37 p.m. This repo has been linked 233 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
whoami13apt/files2

None

Updated: 3 weeks, 6 days ago
1 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : May 16, 2024, 2:53 p.m. This repo has been linked 48 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
cunyterg/oletools

None

Batchfile VBA Python HTML

Updated: 8 months ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : April 21, 2024, 8:27 p.m. This repo has been linked 3 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
cunyterg/python-oletools

None

Batchfile VBA Python HTML

Updated: 8 months ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : April 21, 2024, 8:17 p.m. This repo has been linked 3 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
S3N4T0R-0X0/APT28-Adversary-Simulation

This is a simulation of attack by Fancy Bear group (APT28) targeting high-ranking government officials Western Asia and Eastern Europe

Python C++ C#

Updated: 1 month ago
30 stars 6 fork 6 watcher
Born at : April 7, 2024, 3:27 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
NaInSec/CVE-PoC-in-GitHub

All CVE - PoC in GitHub

poc proofofconcept tester allcve cvegithub cvenew cvepoc cveupdate

Updated: 1 month, 2 weeks ago
8 stars 3 fork 3 watcher
Born at : March 22, 2024, 3:58 p.m. This repo has been linked 928 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
zecool/cve

None

Updated: 9 months, 1 week ago
1 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : March 11, 2024, 1:21 p.m. This repo has been linked 930 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
andr6/awesome-stars

A curated list of my GitHub stars!

Updated: 3 weeks, 4 days ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 13, 2024, 3:47 p.m. This repo has been linked 2 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
eternal-red/data-exfiltration

None

Java

Updated: 10 months, 1 week ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 10, 2024, 5:19 a.m. This repo has been linked 2 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
lions2012/Penetration_Testing_POC

渗透测试有关的POC、EXP、脚本、提权、小工具等---About penetration-testing python-script poc getshell csrf xss cms php-getshell domainmod-xss csrf-webshell cobub-razor cve rce sql sql-poc poc-exp bypass oa-getshell cve-cms

Assembly Python Shell PHP C++ C Go Ruby HTML Java

Updated: 3 weeks, 3 days ago
6 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 7, 2024, 2:08 p.m. This repo has been linked 305 different CVEs too.

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2021-40444 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

  • Kaspersky
Exploits and vulnerabilities in Q3 2024

Q3 2024 saw multiple vulnerabilities discovered in Windows and Linux subsystems that are not standard for cyberattacks. This is because operating system developers have been releasing new security mit ... Read more

Published Date: Dec 06, 2024 (2 weeks, 1 day ago)
CVE-2024-45519 CVE-2024-47177 CVE-2024-5290 CVE-2024-38112 CVE-2024-6387 CVE-2024-3183 CVE-2023-51385 CVE-2023-4911 CVE-2023-36802 CVE-2023-38831 ...+11 more CVE
  • Kaspersky
Exploits and vulnerabilities in Q2 2024

Q2 2024 was eventful in terms of new interesting vulnerabilities and exploitation techniques for applications and operating systems. Attacks through vulnerable drivers have become prevalent as a gener ... Read more

Published Date: Aug 21, 2024 (4 months ago)
CVE-2024-4577 CVE-2024-26229 CVE-2024-26169 CVE-2023-2640 CVE-2023-36884 CVE-2022-41082 CVE-2022-41040 CVE-2022-30190 CVE-2022-0847 CVE-2021-4034 ...+4 more CVE
  • Trend Micro
CVE-2024-38112: Void Banshee Targets Windows Users Through Zombie Internet Explorer in Zero-Day Attacks

Exploits & Vulnerabilities Our threat hunters discovered CVE-2024-38112, which was used as a zero-day by APT group Void Banshee, to access and execute files through the disabled Internet Explorer usin ... Read more

Published Date: Jul 15, 2024 (5 months, 1 week ago)
CVE-2024-38112 CVE-2023-50164 CVE-2021-40444

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2021-40444 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108

    Nov. 21, 2024

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html
    Added Reference http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/165214/Microsoft-Office-Word-MSHTML-Remote-Code-Execution.html
    Added Reference http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167317/Microsoft-Office-MSDT-Follina-Proof-Of-Concept.html
    Added Reference https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2021-40444
  • Modified Analysis by [email protected]

    Jul. 29, 2024

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed Reference Type http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
    Changed CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:20h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:21h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1607:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1809:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1909:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:2004:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:*:*:-:*:-:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_8.1:-:*:*:*:-:*:-:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_rt_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:sp1:*:*:*:*:x64:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:r2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:20h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:2004:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2019:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2022:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* OR *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_1507:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.10240.19060 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_1607:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.14393.4651 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_1809:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.17763.2183 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_1909:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.18363.1801 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_2004:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.19041.1237 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_20h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.19042.1237 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10_21h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.19043.1237 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_rt_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2004:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.19041.1237 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:sp1:*:*:*:*:x64:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:r2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.14393.4651 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2019:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.17763.2183 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2022:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.20348.230 *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_20h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 10.0.19042.1237
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    May. 14, 2024

    Action Type Old Value New Value
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Dec. 28, 2023

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed Description Microsoft MSHTML Remote Code Execution Vulnerability <p>Microsoft is investigating reports of a remote code execution vulnerability in MSHTML that affects Microsoft Windows. Microsoft is aware of targeted attacks that attempt to exploit this vulnerability by using specially-crafted Microsoft Office documents.</p> <p>An attacker could craft a malicious ActiveX control to be used by a Microsoft Office document that hosts the browser rendering engine. The attacker would then have to convince the user to open the malicious document. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.</p> <p>Microsoft Defender Antivirus and Microsoft Defender for Endpoint both provide detection and protections for the known vulnerability. Customers should keep antimalware products up to date. Customers who utilize automatic updates do not need to take additional action. Enterprise customers who manage updates should select the detection build 1.349.22.0 or newer and deploy it across their environments. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint alerts will be displayed as: “Suspicious Cpl File Execution”.</p> <p>Upon completion of this investigation, Microsoft will take the appropriate action to help protect our customers. This may include providing a security update through our monthly release process or providing an out-of-cycle security update, depending on customer needs.</p> <p>Please see the <strong>Mitigations</strong> and <strong>Workaround</strong> sections for important information about steps you can take to protect your system from this vulnerability.</p> <p><strong>UPDATE</strong> September 14, 2021: Microsoft has released security updates to address this vulnerability. Please see the Security Updates table for the applicable update for your system. We recommend that you install these updates immediately. Please see the FAQ for important information about which updates are applicable to your system.</p>
    Added CVSS V3.1 Microsoft Corporation AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:H/A:L
  • Modified Analysis by [email protected]

    Oct. 14, 2022

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed Reference Type http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167317/Microsoft-Office-MSDT-Follina-Proof-Of-Concept.html No Types Assigned http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167317/Microsoft-Office-MSDT-Follina-Proof-Of-Concept.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
  • CWE Remap by [email protected]

    Jul. 12, 2022

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed CWE NVD-CWE-noinfo CWE-22
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Jun. 02, 2022

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167317/Microsoft-Office-MSDT-Follina-Proof-Of-Concept.html [No Types Assigned]
  • Modified Analysis by [email protected]

    Dec. 15, 2021

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Changed Reference Type http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
    Changed Reference Type http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/165214/Microsoft-Office-Word-MSHTML-Remote-Code-Execution.html No Types Assigned http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/165214/Microsoft-Office-Word-MSHTML-Remote-Code-Execution.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Dec. 09, 2021

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/165214/Microsoft-Office-Word-MSHTML-Remote-Code-Execution.html [No Types Assigned]
  • Initial Analysis by [email protected]

    Sep. 24, 2021

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added CVSS V2 Metadata Victim must voluntarily interact with attack mechanism
    Added CVSS V2 NIST (AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P)
    Added CVSS V3.1 NIST AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
    Changed Reference Type http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html No Types Assigned http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory
    Changed Reference Type https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2021-40444 No Types Assigned https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2021-40444 Mitigation, Patch, Vendor Advisory
    Added CWE NIST NVD-CWE-noinfo
    Added CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:20h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:21h1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1607:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1809:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1909:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:2004:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:*:*:-:*:-:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_8.1:-:*:*:*:-:*:-:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_rt_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:sp1:*:*:*:*:x64:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:r2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:20h2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2016:2004:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2019:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2022:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Sep. 20, 2021

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164210/Microsoft-Windows-MSHTML-Overview.html [No Types Assigned]
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2021-40444 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2021-40444 weaknesses.

Exploit Prediction

EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days.

97.00 }} -0.10%

score

0.99850

percentile

CVSS31 - Vulnerability Scoring System
Attack Vector
Attack Complexity
Privileges Required
User Interaction
Scope
Confidentiality
Integrity
Availability
: