Vulnerability: MS10-021 - Vulnerabilities in Windows Kernel Could Allow Elevation of Privilege (979683)

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	Details
Vulnerability name/brief description	Vulnerabilities in Windows Kernel Could Allow Elevation of Privilege (979683)
CVE/CAN name	CVE-2010-0234 CVE-2010-0235 CVE-2010-0236 CVE-2010-0237 CVE-2010-0238 CVE-2010-0481 CVE-2010-0482 CVE-2010-0810
Vendor threat level	Important
SophosLabs threat level	Low
Solution	MS10-021
Vendor description	This security update resolves several privately reported vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows. The most severe of these vulnerabilities could allow elevation of privilege if an attacker logged on locally and ran a specially crafted application. An attacker must have valid logon credentials and be able to log on locally to exploit these vulnerabilities. The vulnerabilities could not be exploited remotely or by anonymous users.
SophosLabs comments	The vulnerabilities resolved by this security update target different component functionalities of the Windows Kernel. They include: - Improper validation of an argument passed to a system call - Improper handling of specially crafted symbolic links - Incorrect allocation of memory when extracting the destination key from a symbolic-link type registry key - Improper handling of restrictions of symbolic link creation between untrusted and trusted registry hives - Improper validation of registry keys - Failure to validate a virtual path to ensure that it is valid - Improper validation of the relocation section of specially crafted image files - Improper handling of exceptions As the attacker has to logon to the system to exploit these vulnerabilities and cannot be exploited remotely or by anonymous users, Sophos has classified this as low risk.
SophosLabs testing result	N/A
Currently known exploits	At the time of writing SophosLabs have not observed any malware attempting to exploit this vulnerability. Should this situation change samples will be analyzed and we will take action as necessary.
First sample seen	N/A
Discovery date	13th April 2010
Affected software	Microsoft Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 Windows XP Service Pack 2 and Windows XP Service Pack 3 Windows XP Professional x64 Edition Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2003 with SP2 for Itanium-based Systems Windows Vista Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and Windows Vista Service Pack 2 Windows Vista x64 Edition Windows Vista x64 Edition Service Pack 1 and Windows Vista x64 Edition Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems and Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems and Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems and Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems Service Pack 2 Windows 7 for 32-bit Systems Windows 7 for x64-based Systems Windows Server 2008 R2 for x64-based Systems Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems
References	http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS10-021.mspx http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0234 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0235 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0236 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0237 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0238 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0481 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0482 http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=cve-2010-0810
Credits	MAPP
Revisions	13th April 2010 - Initial analysis written

Explanation of terms

Vulnerability Name/Brief Description:
Vendor identifier plus a brief description of the type of attack.

CVE/CAN Name:
Currently assigned CVE name. If a CVE name doesn't exist the CAN name will be used until a CVE has been assigned.

Vendor Threat Level:
Threat level assigned by the vendor

SophosLabs Threat Level:
Threat level assigned by SophosLabs

• LOW RISK - There is little chance of this vulnerability being actively exploited by malware.
• MEDIUM RISK - There is a possibility of this vulnerability being actively exploited by malware.
• HIGH RISK - There is a strong possibility of this vulnerability being actively exploited by malware.
• CRITICAL RISK - This vulnerability will almost certainly be actively exploited by malware.

Solution:
Vendor-supplied Patch identifier and recommended solution, or workaround if applicable.

Vendor Description:
Summary of the cause and potential effect of the vulnerability provided by the vendor.

SophosLabs Comments:
SophosLabs' opinions and observations of the vulnerability in question.

SophosLabs Testing Result:
Details of completed lab testing, if applicable. Please note that the lab test environment may differ significantly from user environments.

Currently Known Exploits:
List of identities for known exploits, if applicable.

First Sample Seen:
Date of the first sample seen by SophosLabs.

Discovery Date:
Date of the earliest known publically disclosed advisory.

Affected Software:
Vulnerable platforms and software versions.