Be careful if you use Office on this operating system, you are at risk
Microsoft Office is the world's most widely used suite for its excellent applications and ease of use. It has been discovered that the applications it consists of suffer from a serious library injection vulnerability. Specifically, this occurs in the macOS version, allowing external access to your device from a malicious attacker thanks to already defined permissions.
Although there are different sets of open source software, Microsoft's is still the most popular currently. It contains the popular applications Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, as well as Outlook, Teams, and OneNote.
The company has long marketed it as a subscription service with added features. It offers enhanced protection against viruses and malware or access to additional storage in Microsoft's OneDrive cloud. Now the problem is that a serious security flaw has been discovered that threatens users' systems.
You should be aware that this version of the Apple operating system is different from other versions. It uses a permissions-based model that customers are asked to manually enable in apps. This is necessary to access certain information and tools on the device.
The problem in this case is that the vulnerability is linked to a commonly used Microsoft program. The good news is that the issue is limited to those using macOS, which greatly reduces the scope of the problem.
How to merge PDF files? Here's a comprehensive guide
Without these permissions, for example, Office for macOS wouldn’t be able to access photos, contacts, camera, or microphone, among other things. Once permissions are granted, the operating system remembers the settings so as not to disturb the user in the future. And this is precisely the mechanism that attackers will now use.
The vulnerability in question allows an attacker to copy the application to a location they control. They then perform library injection to use the application's rights. Essentially, the attacker has the option to record video and audio, access personal data, or log in.
Microsoft, at this time, has not said anything about the actual implications of this vulnerability. Businesses and users are advised to review application permissions in Office on macOS. Additionally, users are urged to actively monitor future updates.