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Navigate URL

This setting controls the Internet Explorer `FEATURE_VALIDATE_NAVIGATE_URL` feature control separately for the listed Office executables.

since 0.9.8.11

Purpose

Show registry keys (14)
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\groove.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\excel.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\mspub.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\powerpnt.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\pptview.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\visio.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\winproj.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\winword.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\outlook.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\spdesign.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\exprwd.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\msaccess.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\onenote.exe
  • HKLM\software\microsoft\internet explorer\main\featurecontrol\feature_validate_navigate_url\mse7.exe

This setting controls the Internet Explorer FEATURE_VALIDATE_NAVIGATE_URL feature control separately for the listed Office executables. When enabled for a process, the Internet Explorer navigation component blocks navigation to pages whose URLs are malformed.

Each value name identifies an executable. A REG_DWORD value containing 1 enables URL validation for the corresponding process. The setting applies at machine scope.

Notes

Security

URL validation prevents an affected Office process from using Internet Explorer or WebBrowser components to navigate to a syntactically malformed URL. This reduces exposure to attacks that depend on ambiguous or unexpected handling of malformed URL syntax.

The setting does not determine whether a syntactically valid URL or its content is trustworthy. It therefore does not block a well-formed phishing or malicious URL and does not replace other protections for Office documents, web content, or protocol handlers.

Possible side effects

Links or application functions that intentionally rely on a nonstandard URL format may no longer navigate successfully. The feature control does not block correctly formed URLs.

Notes

Values are applied per executable. An entry for winword.exe, for example, does not enable the feature for excel.exe or any other process.

This feature control belongs to the Internet Explorer and WebBrowser ActiveX infrastructure. It is not a general URL-filtering policy for every browser or for every external application launch initiated by Office.

Microsoft documentation

Microsoft Learn: INTERNETFEATURELIST enumeration

Microsoft Learn: Security in WPF — WebBrowser Control and Feature Controls

See also