How severe is CVE-2009-0556?

CVE-2009-0556 has a CVSS score of 8.8/10, rated HIGH. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2009-0556?

Affected package information for CVE-2009-0556 is not yet fully mapped. Check the official advisory links for details.

How do I fix CVE-2009-0556?

No fixed version has been published for CVE-2009-0556 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates, apply mitigations recommended by the vendor, and use O3 Security to track when a fix becomes available in your stack.

Is CVE-2009-0556 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 1 known exploit references for CVE-2009-0556, including 1 in-the-wild exploitation observed on GitHub and other sources. Treat this as actively exploitable and prioritize patching immediately. All exploit code should only be run in an isolated sandbox environment for research or authorized testing — never against production systems without explicit written authorization.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2009-0556?

CVE-2009-0556 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 59.0%, placing it in the 98th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A score above 50% indicates significantly elevated exploitation risk — immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Is CVE-2009-0556 in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog?

Yes. CVE-2009-0556 (Microsoft Office PowerPoint Code Injection Vulnerability) was added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 2026-01-07. CISA required all US federal civilian agencies to remediate this vulnerability by 2026-01-28. The required action was: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. Being listed in the KEV catalog is the strongest possible confirmation of active exploitation — treat this as a critical priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2009-0556?

CVE-2009-0556 is classified as Code Injection (CWE-94). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation. This is a high-impact weakness class that often enables remote code execution or data exposure.

Which products and versions are affected by CVE-2009-0556?

CVE-2009-0556 affects microsoft office powerpoint (1 version, e.g. 2004); microsoft powerpoint (3 versions, e.g. 2000, 2002, 2003). Check the affected-products list on this page against your deployed version to confirm exposure.

When was CVE-2009-0556 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2009-0556 was published on April 3, 2009 and was last updated on April 22, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

CISA KEV·Added 2026-01-07 — agencies required to remediate by 2026-01-28

CVE-2009-0556

HIGH

Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, and 2003 SP3, and PowerPoint in Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a PowerPoint file…

Published

Apr 3, 2009

Updated

Apr 22, 2026

Affected

0 pkgs

Patched

None yet

Exploits

1 known

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

59.0%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

High Risk98th percentile-9.27%

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.

Description

Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, and 2003 SP3, and PowerPoint in Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a PowerPoint file with an OutlineTextRefAtom containing an an invalid index value that triggers memory corruption, as exploited in the wild in April 2009 by Exploit:Win32/Apptom.gen, aka "Memory Corruption Vulnerability."

Affected Products

2 products · 4 configurations

Application

office powerpointmicrosoft

1 version

2004

Application

powerpointmicrosoft

3 versions

200020022003

Exploits & PoCs

Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.

Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, and 2003 SP3, and PowerP…

nvd.nist.govNVDOct 2018

Frequently Asked Questions

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2009-0556 in your stack?

O3 detects CVE-2009-0556 across dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.

Scan my stack How O3 SCA works