Microsoft Internet Explorer HTML objects uninitialized memory code execution

Notification Type: IBM Internet Security Systems Protection Alert
Notification Date: December 09, 2008
Notification Version: 1.0
   
Name: Microsoft Internet Explorer HTML objects uninitialized memory code execution
Public disclosure/
In the wild date:
December 9, 2008
Aliases: MS08-073
CVE: CVE-2008-4259
Description:

Microsoft Internet Explorer could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system, caused by improper handling of certain HTML objects when attempting to access uninitialized memory.

 

ISS Coverage

Product Content Version
Proventia Network IDS
Proventia Network IPS
Proventia Network MFS
Proventia Server (Linux)
RealSecure Network
RealSecure Server Sensor
28.190
Proventia Desktop
Proventia Server IPS (Windows)
2330
Propagation Techniques ISS Protection Available

remote exploit

HTML_IE_Objects_Code_Execution

Dec 9, 2008

Detailed Description

Business Impact:

Web exploit toolkits are notorious for targeting browser and browser-related exploits like this vulnerability.  Exploits for this issue may be trivial to create, so X-Force expects to see public proof-of-concept exploit code soon after the vulnerability disclosure.

Compromise of machines may lead to exposure of confidential information, loss of productivity, and further compromise. An attacker would need to entice a user to click a link to trigger this vulnerability.

CVSS Base Score: 9.3
  Access Vector: Network
Access Complexity: Medium
Authentication: None
Confidentiality Impact: Complete
Integrity Impact: Complete
Availability Impact: Complete
Adjusted Temporal Score: 6.9
  Exploitability: Unproven
Remediation Level: Official-Fix
Report Confidence: Confirmed
Affected Products: For a full list of affected versions, see references below.
Technical Description:

Microsoft Internet Explorer could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system, caused by improper handling of certain HTML objects when attempting to access uninitialized memory. By persuading a victim to visit a malicious Web page, a remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability to corrupt memory and execute arbitrary code on the system with the privileges of the victim or cause the browser to crash.

Remediation:

Patches are available for this issue. See References for details.

References

XFDB: http://xforce.iss.net/xforce/xfdb/46858
Microsoft: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms08-073.mspx

Revision History

1.0 Initial publication.

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