CVE-2023-7101 — Spreadsheet::ParseExcel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Overview

Spreadsheet::ParseExcel contains a remote code execution vulnerability due to passing unvalidated input from a file into a string-type “eval”. Specifically, the issue stems from the evaluation of Number format strings within the Excel parsing logic.

Vulnerability details

CVE ID

CVE-2023-7101

Vulnerability

Spreadsheet::ParseExcel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Vendor

Spreadsheet

Affected products

Spreadsheet::ParseExcel: Spreadsheet::ParseExcel

Severity

HIGH

Exploitation status

Actively exploited in the wild (CISA KEV)

Published

2024-01-02

Remediation guidance

CVE-2023-7101 is in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog — U.S. federal civilian agencies are required to remediate it under Binding Operational Directive 22-01. Treat it as a priority for every environment.

Apply the vendor's official security update for Spreadsheet the affected product as soon as possible. Where a patch is unavailable, apply vendor mitigations or isolate/segment exposed systems.

Hunt for indicators of compromise tied to this vulnerability and confirm logging/EDR coverage on affected assets.

Authoritative references

• NVD — National Vulnerability Database
• MITRE CVE Record
• CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog
• FIRST EPSS — Exploit Prediction Scoring