Friends, in today's modern era, most people regularly use Microsoft Office for work, study, or business purposes. If you are one of them, this news is for you. India's cybersecurity watchdog, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), has issued a 'high-risk' security alert regarding a serious vulnerability discovered in Microsoft Office. Cybercriminals could exploit this vulnerability to access affected systems without permission. Let's find out the full details.

Since Microsoft Office is one of the most widely used productivity suites in the world, this vulnerability could affect millions of users in both personal and corporate environments. Users are strongly advised to install the latest security updates from Microsoft without delay.

CERT-In issues 'high risk' security alert

The Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), which operates under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), has identified a critical security vulnerability in Microsoft Office. The vulnerability has been assigned the identifier CVE-2026-45659.

According to CERT-In, this vulnerability exists in certain parts of Microsoft Office and could allow attackers to execute arbitrary code on targeted systems. This warning applies not only to businesses and government organizations, but also to individual users who rely on Microsoft Office on their personal computers.

Given its potential impact, CERT-In has classified the issue as a "high risk" threat.

Why is this flaw so dangerous?

CERT-In says the flaw relates to the de-serialization of untrusted data; this is a security vulnerability that can be exploited when a vulnerable system processes specially crafted malicious data.

If attackers succeed, they can:

Running malicious code remotely.

Entering the system without permission.

Stealing sensitive or confidential information.

Modifying or deleting important data.

Installing malware or ransomware.

Completely taking over the affected device.

How can users protect themselves?

To mitigate the risk associated with CVE-2026-45659, CERT-In has urged all users and organizations to immediately install the latest security patches released by Microsoft.

Suggested safety measures

Update Microsoft Office to the latest version available. Whenever possible, turn on automatic updates.

Regularly install security patches released by Microsoft.

Avoid opening files from unknown or untrusted sources.

Ensure antivirus and endpoint protection software are up-to-date.

Make employees and users aware of potential phishing and malware threats.

PC:Journal India