Vulnerability record

CVE-2026-21509

Microsoft Office Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability

Severity: HighExploitation: Exploitation confirmedCISA KEV
What should I do?

This vulnerability is in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog: attackers are using it. If you run Office, fix it now.

CISA required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

US federal civilian agencies must remediate by Feb 16, 2026.

Patch status

No official fix confirmed yet

Until a fix ships, follow the vendor's mitigations and CISA's required action, limit exposure of affected systems, and watch this record for a patch.

Description

Reliance on untrusted inputs in a security decision in Microsoft Office allows an unauthorized attacker to bypass a security feature locally.

Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database. Official vulnerability data, reproduced as published.

Affected products

Products affected by this vulnerability, with versions and the source of each entry
ProductVendorAffected versionsSource
OfficeMicrosoft2016; 2019KEV

Sources: KEV = CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

Intelligence timeline

Developments from the last 30 days, newest first.

  1. CVSS scoredUpdateKEV

    CVE-2026-21509 scored CVSS 7.8: Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability

    CISA lists this as exploited in the wild. Unpatched Office systems are exposed to active attacks now.

    Basis: NIST National Vulnerability Database

1 earlier event is available with a subscription. See plans.

Coverage

We have not published a story about this vulnerability yet.

References

  • msrc.microsoft.com https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2026-21509
  • nvd.nist.gov https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-21509
  • vicarius.io https://www.vicarius.io/vsociety/posts/cve-2026-21509-detection-script-microsoft-office-security-feature-bypas…
  • vicarius.io https://www.vicarius.io/vsociety/posts/cve-2026-21509-mitigation-script-microsoft-office-security-feature-bypa…
  • cisa.gov https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-21509