What is CVE-2019-0538?

CVE-2019-0538 is a high-severity vulnerability in Microsoft Office. CVSS score: 7.8/10. Published 2019-01-08.

How severe is CVE-2019-0538?

High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.8 out of 10.

Is CVE-2019-0538 known to be exploited?

15 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Vulnerability in Microsoft Office

CVE-2019-0538

A remote code execution vulnerability exists when the Windows Jet Database Engine improperly handles objects in memory, aka "Jet Database Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability." This affects Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2012, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 10, Windows 10 Servers. This CVE ID is unique from CVE-2019-0575, CVE-2019-0576, CVE-2019-0577, CVE-2019-0578, CVE-2019-0579, CVE-2019-0580, CVE-2019-0581, CVE-2019-0582, CVE-2019-0583, CVE-2019-0584.

Published 2019-01-08 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 7.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.204 (97.5th percentile), scored 2026-10-25.

Moderate probability of exploitation in the next 30 days — watch for active exploitation reports. 97th percentile — 97.5% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.205 · newest: 0.204 · change: -0.001

Affected products

Microsoft Office — versions 2010
Microsoft Windows 10 — versions 1607, 1703, 1709
Microsoft Windows 7
Microsoft Windows 8.1
Microsoft Windows Rt 8.1
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 — versions r2
Microsoft Windows Server 2012 — versions r2
Microsoft Windows Server 2016 — versions 1709, 1803
Microsoft Windows Server 2019

Public proof-of-concept exploits

References

portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2019-0538 (Patch, Vendor Advisory)
www.securityfocus.com/bid/106419 (VDB Entry, Third Party Advisory, vdb-entry, Broken Link)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2019-0538?: CVE-2019-0538 is a high-severity vulnerability in Microsoft Office. CVSS score: 7.8/10. Published 2019-01-08.
How severe is CVE-2019-0538?: High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.8 out of 10.
Is CVE-2019-0538 known to be exploited?: 15 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.