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Vulnerabilities in WordPad and Office Text Converters Could Allow Remote Code Execution

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 Details
Vulnerability name/brief description

Vulnerabilities in WordPad and Office Text Converters Could Allow Remote Code Execution (960477) - MS09-010.

CVE/CAN nameCVE-2008-4841, CVE-2009-0087, CVE-2009-0088, CVE-2009-0235
Vendor threat levelCritical
SophosLabs threat levelHigh
Solution

Users are advised to apply the vendor patch MS09-010

Vendor descriptionThis security update resolves two publicly disclosed vulnerabilities and two privately reported vulnerabilities in Microsoft WordPad and Microsoft Office text converters. The vulnerabilities could allow remote code execution if a specially crafted file is opened in WordPad or Microsoft Office Word.
SophosLabs commentsCombined, all of the vulnerabilities addressed in this Microsoft update are associated with the opening of Word, RTF, WordPerfect and Write files, making it a particular target for use in malicious email attachments. Given that two of these vulnerabilities are already publicly disclosed it is quite likely that we will see attacks centred around these exploits in the coming weeks.
SophosLabs testing resultN/A
Currently known exploitsSophos has received a single submission of a file that attempts to exploit this issue on 27 November 2008 and has been detecting it as Mal/DocDrop-A since that date.
First sample seenN/A
Discovery date14 April 2009
Affected softwareMicrosoft Windows 2000, Service Pack 4
Windows XP, Service Pack 2 & Service Pack 3
Windows XP Pro x64
Windows XP Pro x64, Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2003, Service Pack 1 & Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2003 x64
Windows Server 2003 x64, Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2003 Itanium, Service Pack 1 & Service Pack 2
Microsoft Office 2000, Service Pack 3
Microsoft Office XP, Service Pack 3
Microsoft Office Converter Pack
References

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms09-010.mspx
http://www.cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2008-4841
http://www.cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2009-0087
http://www.cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2009-0088
http://www.cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2009-0235

CreditsMicrosoft MAPP Program
Revisions14 April 2009 - 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.

 

 

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