CVE-2017-8543 — Microsoft Windows Search Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Microsoft Windows XP SP3, Windows XP x64 XP2, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista, Windows 7 SP1, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2012 and R2, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, and 1703, and Windows Server 2016 allow an

01What is this vulnerability?

Microsoft Windows XP SP3, Windows XP x64 XP2, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista, Windows 7 SP1, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2012 and R2, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, and 1703, and Windows Server 2016 allow an attacker to take control of the affected system when Windows Search fails to handle objects in memory, aka "Windows…

02Affected products

Vendor	Product	Versions
Microsoft Corporation	Microsoft Windows	Microsoft Windows XP SP3, Windows XP x64 XP2, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista, Windows 7 SP1, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2012 and R2, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, and 1703, and Windows Server 2016.

03Active exploitation status

Yes — actively exploited. Added to the CISA KEV catalog on 2022-05-24. Ransomware use: Unknown.

04Recommended remediation

• Patch to a fixed version listed in the vendor advisory (see references below).
• Mitigate with WAF rules, network egress filters, or feature flags where the patch is not yet available.
• Hunt historical logs for exploitation indicators — see Detection signatures below.

05Technical details

For the full vendor write-up, exploit chains, and reference implementations, see the references list in section 09.

06Detection signatures

Open the Sigma generator with a pre-filled prompt for this CVE to draft a starting detection in your stack of choice:

Open in Sigma generator →

07Related CVEs

No directly-cited follow-up CVEs in the KB record for this advisory. The references list in section 09 carries the vendor cross-references.

08Timeline

• Published: 2017-06-15T01:00:00.000Z
• Last modified: 2025-10-21T23:55:39.576Z
• Added to CISA KEV: 2022-05-24
• BOD 22-01 due: 2022-06-14

09References

• www.securityfocus.com — http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/98824
• portal.msrc.microsoft.com — https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2017-8543
• www.securitytracker.com — http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1038667