CVE-2026-20952 is a use-after-free vulnerability in Microsoft Office that can lead to code execution. The flaw arises from improper handling of object lifetime in Office memory management, creating a condition where freed memory can be reused in a way that allows attacker-controlled data to influence program execution. Microsoft classifies the issue as a remote code execution vulnerability in Office, and reporting indicates exploitation may be achievable through a crafted Office document and, in some scenarios, through content rendered via the Preview Pane. Affected product lines include Microsoft Office 2016, Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, Office LTSC 2024, Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise, and Office LTSC for Mac 2021 and 2024.
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What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.
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No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.
Products and vendors Mallory has correlated with this vulnerability. Open in Mallory to drill down to specific CPE configurations and version ranges.
Vendor-confirmed product mapping. Mallory continuously reconciles this list against your asset inventory.
23 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.
Critical Microsoft Office remote code execution via maliciously crafted Office files; includes an Outlook preview-pane exploitation vector per the content.
A Microsoft Office use-after-free leading to local arbitrary code execution, potentially triggerable via Preview Pane (reduced/no user interaction in some scenarios).
A Microsoft Office use-after-free leading to local arbitrary code execution, potentially triggerable via Preview Pane (reduced/no user interaction in some scenarios).
A critical remote code execution vulnerability in Microsoft Office triggered via a malicious Office document (potentially exploitable via Outlook Preview Pane per the content).
Query your assets running an affected version, and investigate the blast radius.
Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.
Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.
YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.
Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.
Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.