Office Macro Protection

Issue

Macros automate repetitive tasks. They can be time-saving tools, but can also be used to transmit viruses when a user opens an infected document containing a malicious macro. Opening or sharing an infected document can enable the malicious macro to spread to other documents on your system, or to other users.

Solution

Microsoft® Office System 2003, Office XP, Office 2000, and Office 97 provide security support for macros by configuring Office to reject all macros or prompting users before running a macro.

Protect yourself against macro viruses by setting appropriate macro security levels in each of your Microsoft Office programs. For Word, Outlook®, and PowerPoint®, the recommended setting is High. For Excel, the recommended setting is Medium.

Instructions

To set macro security settings in Office System 2003, Office XP, or Office 2000

Start the Microsoft Office program you would like to configure.
On the Tools menu, click Macro, and then click Security.
In the Security dialog box, click the Security Level tab, and then click the appropriate setting (High, Medium, or Low). If you set security to High, click the Trusted Sources tab and specify the sources from which you want to accept macros.
Repeat steps 1 - 3 for each Office program installed on your computer.

To set macro security settings in Office 97

On the Tools menu, click Options.
On the General tab, select the Macro Virus Protection check box.

After you select this check box, users will be prompted each time they open a document with a macro, and they can choose whether or not to run the specific macro.

Additional Resources

WD: Frequently Asked Questions About Word Macro Viruses (187243)