Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2024-38189 is a Microsoft Project remote code execution flaw. It matters because CISA lists it as known exploited, and successful exploitation could let an attacker run code after user interaction. Treat this as a priority endpoint patching issue, especially where affected Microsoft Office, Project, or Microsoft 365 Apps versions are installed.
Executive priority
High priority. This is not just theoretical: CISA KEV status indicates known exploitation. Patch affected Microsoft Project and Office environments promptly, starting with externally exposed workflows and users likely to receive untrusted documents.
Technical view
The source data describes a high-severity Microsoft Project RCE with CVSS 8.8, AV:N, AC:L, PR:N, UI:R, and CWE-20 input validation. The vector indicates remote reachability, low complexity, no privileges required, and required user interaction, with high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on user workstations running the listed affected products: Microsoft Project 2016, Microsoft Office 2019, Microsoft Office LTSC 2021, or Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise. The bundle does not identify affected operating systems, file types, or server-side exposure.
Exploitation context
CISA KEV status supports active exploitation. The provided CVSS vector shows exploitation requires user interaction, but no privileges. The source bundle does not include public exploit details, exploitation volume, attacker attribution, or confirmed intrusion outcomes.
Researcher notes
Evidence is strong for severity, affected Microsoft products, CVSS characteristics, and KEV exploitation status. The provided bundle does not include exploit mechanics, patch KB identifiers, telemetry indicators, or concrete mitigations beyond following Microsoft guidance and applying updates.
Mitigation direction
- Apply Microsoft updates for CVE-2024-38189 per MSRC guidance.
- Prioritize systems with Microsoft Project and affected Office/Microsoft 365 Apps versions.
- Check CISA KEV requirements for remediation timelines and tracking.
- Limit handling of untrusted Project or Office content until patched.
- Monitor Microsoft guidance for any product-specific mitigations or revisions.
Validation and detection
- Inventory endpoints for the affected Microsoft products and versions.
- Confirm August 2024 or later applicable Microsoft security updates are installed.
- Check vulnerability management tools for CVE-2024-38189 detection results.
- Review CISA KEV tracking for this CVE in remediation dashboards.
- Validate high-risk users who handle external project documents are patched.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-20: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2024-38189 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- Yes
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:F/RL:O/RC:C
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CISA KEV status
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:F/RL:O/RC:C2.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.8HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:F/RL:O/RC:C
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- Microsoft Project Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityCVE reference · vendor-advisory
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2024-38189CVE reference · government-resource
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Input Validation
Improper Input Validation represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.