Title

Disable inclusion of document properties for PDF and XPS output - Office. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

By default, if the Microsoft Save as PDF or XPS Add-in for 2007 Microsoft Office Programs add-in is installed, document properties are saved as metadata when users save files using the PDF or XPS or Publish as PDF or XPS commands in Access 2007, Excel 2007, InfoPath 2007, PowerPoint 2007, and Word 2007, unless the Document properties option is unchecked in the Options dialog box. If this metadata contains sensitive information, saving it with the file could compromise security.

Check Content

The policy value for User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Microsoft Office 2007 system -> Microsoft Save As PDF and XPS add-ins “Disable inclusion of document properties in PDF and XPS output” will be set to “Enabled”. Procedure: Use the Windows Registry Editor to navigate to the following key: HKCU\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Common\FixedFormat Criteria: If the value DisableFixedFormatDocProperties is REG_DWORD = 1, this is not a finding.

Fix Text

The policy value for User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Microsoft Office 2007 system -> Microsoft Save As PDF and XPS add-ins “Disable inclusion of document properties in PDF and XPS output” will be set to “Enabled”. "Note: Group Policy Administrative Templates are available from the www.microsoft.com download site. The MS Office 2007 System (Office12.adm) is included in the AdminTemplates.exe file. This template provides the mechanisms to incorporate Microsoft Office 2007 System policies via the Microsoft Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc)." "Note: If the Microsoft Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) is not used to incorporate the remediation to this vulnerability the Microsoft Registry Editor (regedit.exe) may be used to create the registry key and value required."

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-18816r1_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-17660

Group Title:

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

Controls tied to check. These are derived from the CCIs shown above.