__________________________________________________________ The U.S. Department of Energy Computer Incident Advisory Capability ___ __ __ _ ___ / | /_\ / \___ __|__ / \ \___ __________________________________________________________ INFORMATION BULLETIN Microsoft Windows Script Engine Vulnerability [Microsoft Security Bulletin MS03-008] March 20, 2003 22:00 GMT Number N-063 ______________________________________________________________________________ PROBLEM: A flaw exists in the way Windows Script Engine for JScript processes information. An attacker could exploit the vulnerability by constructing a web page that, when visited by the user, would execute code of the attacker’s choice with the user’s privileges. PLATFORM: Microsoft Windows 98 Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition Microsoft Windows Me Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition Microsoft Windows 2000 Microsoft Windows XP DAMAGE: Run code of attacker's choice. SOLUTION: Apply patch as stated in Microsoft's bulletin. ______________________________________________________________________________ VULNERABILITY The risk is MEDIUM. For an attack to be successful, the user ASSESSMENT: would need to visit a website under the attacker's control or receive an HTML e-mail from the attacker. ______________________________________________________________________________ LINKS: CIAC BULLETIN: http://www.ciac.org/ciac/bulletins/n-063.shtml ORIGINAL BULLETIN: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview /default.asp?url=/technet/security/bulletin /MS03-008.asp ______________________________________________________________________________ [***** Start Microsoft Security Bulletin MS03-008 *****] Microsoft Security Bulletin MS03-008 Flaw in Windows Script Engine Could Allow Code Execution (814078) Originally posted: March 19, 2003 Summary Who should read this bulletin: Customers using Microsoft® Windows®. Impact of vulnerability: Run Code of Attacker’s Choice Maximum Severity Rating: Critical Recommendation: Customers should install the patch immediately. End User Bulletin: An end user version of this bulletin is available at: http://www.microsoft.com/security/security_bulletins/ms03-008.asp. Affected Software: Microsoft Windows 98 Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition Microsoft Windows Me Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition Microsoft Windows 2000 Microsoft Windows XP Technical details Technical description: The Windows Script Engine provides Windows operating systems with the ability to execute script code. Script code can be used to add functionality to web pages, or to automate tasks within the operating system or within a program. Script code can be written in several different scripting languages, such as Visual Basic Script, or JScript. A flaw exists in the way by which the Windows Script Engine for JScript processes information. An attacker could exploit the vulnerability by constructing a web page that, when visited by the user, would execute code of the attacker’s choice with the user’s privileges. The web page could be hosted on a web site, or sent directly to the user in email. Although Microsoft has supplied a patch for this vulnerability and recommends all affected customers install the patch immediately, additional preventive measures have been provided that customers can use to help block the exploitation of this vulnerability while they are assessing the impact and compatibility of the patch. These temporary workarounds are discussed in the “Workarounds” section in the FAQ below. Mitigating factors: * For an attack to be successful, the user would need to visit a website under the attacker's control or receive an HTML e-mail from the attacker. * Computers configured to disable active scripting in Internet Explorer are not susceptible to this issue. * Exploiting the vulnerability would allow the attacker only the same privileges as the user. Users whose accounts are configured to have few privileges on the system would be at less risk than ones who operate with administrative privileges. * Automatic exploitation of the vulnerability by an HTML email would be blocked by Outlook Express 6.0 and Outlook 2002 in their default configurations, and by Outlook 98 and 2000 if used in conjunction with the Outlook Email Security Update. Severity Rating: Windows 98 Critical Windows 98 Second Edition Critical Windows Me Critical Windows NT 4.0 Critical Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition Critical Windows 2000 Critical Windows XP Critical The above assessment is based on the types of systems affected by the vulnerability, their typical deployment patterns, and the effect that exploiting the vulnerability would have on them. Vulnerability identifier: CAN-2003-0010 Tested Versions: Microsoft tested Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows Me, Windows NT 4.0, Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition, Windows 2000, and Windows XP to assess whether they are affected by these vulnerabilities. Previous versions are no longer supported, and may or may not be affected by these vulnerabilities. Patch availability Download locations for this patch The patches for all Windows systems are available via Windows Update. In addition, these patches are also available for download to allow the patches to be manually installed. Windows 98 and Windows 98 SE: http://www.microsoft.com/windows98/downloads/contents/WUCritical /q814078/default.asp Windows Me: Windows Update. Windows NT 4.0: http://microsoft.com/downloads /details.aspx?FamilyId=C6504FD9-5E2C-45BF-9424-55D7C5D2221B&displaylang=en Windows NT 4.0, Terminal Server Edition: http://microsoft.com/downloads /details.aspx?FamilyId=C6504FD9-5E2C-45BF-9424-55D7C5D2221B&displaylang=en Windows 2000: http://microsoft.com/downloads /details.aspx?FamilyId=824B1BD4-B4D6-49D5-8C58-199BDC731B64&displaylang=en Windows XP Home Edition and Professional Edition: http://microsoft.com/downloads /details.aspx?FamilyId=824B1BD4-B4D6-49D5-8C58-199BDC731B64&displaylang=en Additional information about this patch Installation platforms: * The Window 98 patch can be installed on systems running Windows 98 Gold. * The Window 98SE patch can be installed on systems running Windows 98SE Gold. * The Windows Me patch can be installed on systems running Windows Me Gold. * The Windows NT 4.0 patch can be installed on systems running Service Pack 6a. * The Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition patch can be installed on systems running Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition Service Pack 6. * The Windows 2000 patch can be installed on systems running Windows 2000 Service Pack 2 or Service Pack 3. * The patch for Windows XP can be installed on systems running Windows XP Gold or Service Pack 1. Inclusion in future service packs: The fix for this issue will be included in Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 and Windows XP Service Pack 2. Reboot needed: Yes Patch can be uninstalled: No Superseded patches: None. Verifying patch installation: To verify that the patch has been installed on the machine, confirm that the following registry key has been created on the machine: * Windows 98, Windows 98SE and Window Me: To verify that the patch has been installed on the machine, use the Qfecheck.exe tool and confirm that the display includes the following information: UPD814078 Windows xx Q814078 Update where xx is “98” for Windows 98 or 98SE, or “Me” for Windows Me. To verify the individual files, consult the file manifest in Knowledge Base article Q814078. * Windows NT 4.0: To verify that the patch has been installed on the machine, confirm that all files listed in the file manifest in Knowledge Base article Q814078 are present on the system. * Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition: To verify that the patch has been installed on the machine, confirm that all files listed in the file manifest in Knowledge Base article Q814078 are present on the system. * Windows 2000: To verify that the patch has been installed on the machine, confirm that the following registry key has been created on the machine: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Updates\Windows 2000\SP4\Q814078. To verify the individual files, use the date/time and version information provided in the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Updates\Windows 2000\SP4\Q814078\Filelist. * Windows XP: To verify that the patch has been installed, confirm that the following registry key has been created on the machine: HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Updates\Windows XP\SP2\Q814078. To verify the individual files, use the date/time and version information provided in the following registry key: HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Updates\Windows XP\SP2\Q814078\Filelist. Caveats: None Localization: Localized versions of this patch are available at the locations discussed in “Patch Availability”. Obtaining other security patches: Patches for other security issues are available from the following locations: * Security patches are available from the Microsoft Download Center, and can be most easily found by doing a keyword search for "security_patch". * Patches for consumer platforms are available from the WindowsUpdate web site Other information: Support: * Knowledge Base Article 814078 discusses this issue. Knowledge Base articles can be found on the Microsoft Online Support web site. * Technical support is available from Microsoft Product Support Services. There is no charge for support calls associated with security patches. Security Resources: The Microsoft TechNet Security Web Site provides additional information about security in Microsoft products. Disclaimer: The information provided in the Microsoft Knowledge Base is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Microsoft disclaims all warranties, either express or implied, including the warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers be liable for any damages whatsoever including direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, loss of business profits or special damages, even if Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages so the foregoing limitation may not apply. Revisions: V1.0 (March 19, 2003): Bulletin Created. [***** End Microsoft Security Bulletin MS03-008 *****] _______________________________________________________________________________ CIAC wishes to acknowledge the contributions of Microsoft Corporation for the information contained in this bulletin. _______________________________________________________________________________ CIAC, the Computer Incident Advisory Capability, is the computer security incident response team for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the emergency backup response team for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). CIAC is located at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, California. CIAC is also a founding member of FIRST, the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams, a global organization established to foster cooperation and coordination among computer security teams worldwide. CIAC services are available to DOE, DOE contractors, and the NIH. CIAC can be contacted at: Voice: +1 925-422-8193 (7x24) FAX: +1 925-423-8002 STU-III: +1 925-423-2604 E-mail: ciac@ciac.org Previous CIAC notices, anti-virus software, and other information are available from the CIAC Computer Security Archive. World Wide Web: http://www.ciac.org/ Anonymous FTP: ftp.ciac.org PLEASE NOTE: Many users outside of the DOE, ESnet, and NIH computing communities receive CIAC bulletins. If you are not part of these communities, please contact your agency's response team to report incidents. Your agency's team will coordinate with CIAC. The Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST) is a world-wide organization. A list of FIRST member organizations and their constituencies can be obtained via WWW at http://www.first.org/. This document was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor the University of California nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation or favoring by the United States Government or the University of California. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or the University of California, and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. 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