[ISN] Microsoft issues patches for five software flaws

From: InfoSec News (isn@private)
Date: Wed Oct 15 2003 - 23:24:02 PDT

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    http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2003/1020mssec.html
    
    By Linda Rosencrance
    Computerworld
    10/15/03
    
    Microsoft Wednesday issued its first monthly security update since 
    announcing the new initiative last week. 
    
    The update consists of five Windows vulnerabilities, four of which the 
    company deemed "critical."
    
    Three of the flaws affect all recent Microsoft operating systems, 
    including Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 
    2003. The fourth critical flaw affects only Windows 2000. 
    
    According to security bulletin MS03-041, there is a vulnerability in 
    Authenticode that, under certain low-memory conditions, could allow an 
    ActiveX control to download and install without asking the user for 
    approval to do so. An attacker could host a malicious Web site 
    designed to exploit this vulnerability, Microsoft said. 
    
    According to security bulletin MS03-042, a vulnerability exists in the 
    Microsoft Local Troubleshooter ActiveX control (Tshoot.ocx), which 
    could allow a buffer overflow that would let an attacker run malicious 
    code on a user's system. 
    
    According to security bulletin MS03-043, a flaw in the operating 
    system's Messenger Service could allow arbitrary code to be executed 
    on an affected system. The vulnerability results because the Messenger 
    Service doesn't properly validate the length of a message before 
    passing it on to the allocated buffer. 
    
    According to security bulletin MS03-044, a flaw exists in the Help and 
    Support Center function that ships with Windows XP and Windows Server 
    2003. The vulnerability can arise when a file associated with the 
    Human Communications Protocol contains an unchecked buffer. 
    
    An attacker could exploit the vulnerability by constructing a URL 
    that, when clicked on by the user, could execute malicious code. 
    
    The fifth vulnerability, which was listed by Microsoft in Security 
    Bulletin MS03-045 as "important," affects Windows NT, Windows 2000, 
    Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 and could give an attacker 
    "complete control over the system by using Utility Manager in Windows 
    2000." 
    
    
    
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