CVE-2024-43600 is a high-severity elevation of privilege vulnerability affecting Microsoft Office 2016, specifically version 16.0.0. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-284, which indicates improper access control. This means that the affected Microsoft Office component does not adequately enforce permissions, allowing a user with limited privileges (low-level privileges) to escalate their access rights without requiring user interaction. The CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 reflects a high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, with an attack vector limited to local access (AV:L), low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring privileges (PR:L), and no user interaction (UI:N). The scope is unchanged (S:U), but the impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability is high (C:H/I:H/A:H). This vulnerability enables an attacker who already has some level of access to the system to gain elevated privileges, potentially allowing them to execute arbitrary code with higher permissions, access sensitive data, or disrupt system operations. Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the vulnerability's characteristics make it a significant risk, especially in environments where Microsoft Office 2016 is still in use and users have local access to systems. The lack of available patches at the time of publication increases the urgency for mitigation and monitoring.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2024-43600 can be substantial. Microsoft Office 2016 remains widely used in many enterprises, government agencies, and educational institutions across Europe. An elevation of privilege vulnerability in such a ubiquitous productivity suite can lead to unauthorized access to sensitive documents, intellectual property theft, and disruption of business operations. The high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability means that attackers could manipulate or delete critical data, install persistent malware, or move laterally within networks after privilege escalation. This is particularly concerning for sectors with strict data protection regulations such as GDPR, where unauthorized data access or breaches can result in severe legal and financial penalties. Additionally, the vulnerability could be leveraged in targeted attacks against organizations with local user access, including contractors or insider threats. The absence of user interaction in exploitation increases the risk of automated or stealthy attacks, complicating detection and response efforts.

Given the absence of an official patch at the time of disclosure, European organizations should implement layered mitigations. First, restrict local access to systems running Microsoft Office 2016 to trusted users only, minimizing the attack surface. Employ strict access control policies and use application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized execution of code. Enable and enforce least privilege principles, ensuring users operate with the minimum necessary permissions. Monitor for unusual privilege escalation attempts using endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools and audit logs for suspicious activities related to Office processes. Consider upgrading to a supported and patched version of Microsoft Office, such as Office 365 or Office 2019/2021, which may not be affected by this vulnerability. Network segmentation can limit lateral movement if exploitation occurs. Finally, maintain up-to-date backups and incident response plans to quickly recover from potential compromises.