📄 Description (English)
Microsoft Office Memory Corruption Vulnerability — Microsoft Office contains a memory corruption vulnerability due to the way objects are handled in memory. Successful exploitation allows for remote code execution in the context of the current user. This vulnerability is known to be chained with CVE-2018-0798.
🤖 AI Executive Summary
CVE-2018-0802 is a critical memory corruption vulnerability in Microsoft Office's Equation Editor (EQNEDT32.EXE) that allows remote code execution when a user opens a specially crafted document. This vulnerability has been actively exploited in the wild and is frequently chained with CVE-2018-0798 for enhanced attack capabilities. With a CVSS score of 9.0 and public exploits readily available, this represents an extremely high-risk threat, particularly for organizations relying heavily on Microsoft Office for daily operations. It has been a favored vector for APT groups targeting Middle Eastern organizations.
📄 Description (Arabic)
🤖 AI Intelligence Analysis Analyzed: Apr 9, 2026 21:32
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia Impact Assessment
This vulnerability poses severe risk to all Saudi sectors due to the ubiquitous use of Microsoft Office. Banking sector (SAMA-regulated entities) faces risk through phishing campaigns with weaponized Office documents. Government agencies (NCA-governed) are prime targets for APT groups known to exploit this vulnerability in the Middle East region. Energy sector (ARAMCO, SABIC) and telecom (STC, Mobily, Zain) are at high risk given documented campaigns by threat actors like APT34/OilRig and MuddyWater that have specifically targeted Saudi organizations using Office-based exploits. Healthcare and education sectors with potentially unpatched legacy systems are also significantly exposed.
🏢 Affected Saudi Sectors
Government
Banking
Energy
Telecommunications
Healthcare
Education
Defense
Retail
⚖️ Saudi Risk Score (AI)
9.5
/ 10.0
🔧 Remediation Steps (English)
IMMEDIATE ACTIONS:
1. Apply Microsoft Security Update KB4011656 and related January 2018 patches immediately across all systems
2. Disable the Equation Editor component (EQNEDT32.EXE) via registry: reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Common\COM Compatibility\{0002CE02-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}" /v "Compatibility Flags" /t REG_DWORD /d 0x400
3. Block RTF files at email gateways and web proxies
PATCHING GUIDANCE:
- Ensure all Microsoft Office versions (2007, 2010, 2013, 2016) are updated to latest security patches
- Verify patch deployment using vulnerability scanners
- Prioritize systems with internet-facing email access
COMPENSATING CONTROLS:
- Enable Protected View and Attack Surface Reduction (ASR) rules in Microsoft Defender
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized process execution from Office
- Deploy email attachment sandboxing solutions
- Restrict macro execution via Group Policy
DETECTION RULES:
- Monitor for EQNEDT32.EXE spawning child processes (cmd.exe, powershell.exe, mshta.exe)
- YARA rules for RTF documents containing OLE objects with Equation Editor class IDs
- Sysmon Event ID 1: ParentImage contains EQNEDT32.EXE
- Network detection for post-exploitation C2 traffic patterns
🔧 خطوات المعالجة (العربية)
الإجراءات الفورية:
1. تطبيق تحديث الأمان من مايكروسوفت KB4011656 والتحديثات ذات الصلة لشهر يناير 2018 فوراً على جميع الأنظمة
2. تعطيل مكون محرر المعادلات (EQNEDT32.EXE) عبر السجل: reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Common\COM Compatibility\{0002CE02-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}" /v "Compatibility Flags" /t REG_DWORD /d 0x400
3. حظر ملفات RTF على بوابات البريد الإلكتروني وخوادم الوكيل
إرشادات التصحيح:
- التأكد من تحديث جميع إصدارات Microsoft Office (2007، 2010، 2013، 2016) بأحدث تصحيحات الأمان
- التحقق من نشر التصحيحات باستخدام أدوات فحص الثغرات
- إعطاء الأولوية للأنظمة التي لديها وصول مباشر للبريد الإلكتروني عبر الإنترنت
الضوابط التعويضية:
- تفعيل العرض المحمي وقواعد تقليل سطح الهجوم (ASR) في Microsoft Defender
- تطبيق القوائم البيضاء للتطبيقات لمنع تنفيذ العمليات غير المصرح بها من Office
- نشر حلول وضع الحماية لمرفقات البريد الإلكتروني
- تقييد تنفيذ وحدات الماكرو عبر سياسة المجموعة
قواعد الكشف:
- مراقبة EQNEDT32.EXE عند إنشاء عمليات فرعية (cmd.exe، powershell.exe، mshta.exe)
- قواعد YARA لمستندات RTF التي تحتوي على كائنات OLE مع معرفات فئة محرر المعادلات
- Sysmon معرف الحدث 1: ParentImage يحتوي على EQNEDT32.EXE
- كشف الشبكة لأنماط حركة مرور C2 بعد الاستغلال
📋 Regulatory Compliance Mapping
🟢 NCA ECC 2024
2-3-1 (Patch Management)
2-5-1 (Malware Protection)
2-6-1 (Email Security)
2-2-1 (Asset Management)
2-9-1 (Vulnerability Management)
🔵 SAMA CSF
3.3.3 (Patch Management)
3.3.5 (Malware Protection)
3.3.7 (Email and Messaging Security)
3.3.4 (Vulnerability Management)
3.1.3 (Cyber Security Risk Management)
🟡 ISO 27001:2022
A.8.8 (Management of Technical Vulnerabilities)
A.8.7 (Protection Against Malware)
A.8.23 (Web Filtering)
A.5.7 (Threat Intelligence)
A.8.28 (Secure Coding)
🟣 PCI DSS v4.0
6.3.3 (Security Patches)
5.2 (Anti-Malware Solutions)
11.3 (Vulnerability Scanning)
6.1 (Vulnerability Identification)
🔗 References & Sources 0
No references.
📦 Affected Products / CPE 1 entries
Microsoft:Office