ie8 fix
madison

Zero Day

Ryan Naraine, Emil Protalinski and Dancho Danchev

Microsoft to ship emergency IE, Visual Studio patches

By | July 27, 2009, 6:18am PDT

Summary: Less than a month after a first pass at patching a troublesome flaw affecting its dominant Internet Explorer browser, Microsoft has announced plans to release two emergency updates with a comprehensive fix for the problem. The unusual move comes on the heels of a bombshell blog post by reverse engineering specialist Halvar Flake that the original [...]

Less than a month after a first pass at patching a troublesome flaw affecting its dominant Internet Explorer browser, Microsoft has announced plans to release two emergency updates with a comprehensive fix for the problem.

The unusual move comes on the heels of a bombshell blog post by reverse engineering specialist Halvar Flake that the original IE kill-bit fix was “insufficient” and that Microsoft “might have accidentally introduced security vulnerabilities into third-party products.”

Microsoft declined to discuss specifics of the emergency patches until tomorrow (July 28, 2009) but a source tells me that it is directly linked to the Microsoft Video ActiveX Control (msvidctl.dll) issue that was being exploited in the wild.

[ SEE: IE users beware: Zero-day attacks hit Microsoft Video ActiveX Control ]

Tomorrow’s out-of-band updates will address:

  • One bulletin will be for the Microsoft Visual Studio product line; application developers should be aware of updates available affecting certain types of applications.
  • The second bulletin contains defense-in-depth changes to Internet Explorer to address attack vectors related to the Visual Studio bulletin, as well as fixes for unrelated vulnerabilities that are rated Critical.

Interestingly, the issue of using kill-bits to secure IE from ActiveX control vulnerabilities will take center stage at the Black Hat security conference this year.  IBM X-Force researcher Mark Dowd will show how these kill-bits can be bypassed [video demo] to launch code execution attacks.

Kick off your day with ZDNet's daily e-mail newsletter. It's the freshest tech news and opinion, served hot. Get it.

Ryan Naraine is a journalist and social media enthusiast specializing in Internet and computer security issues.

Disclosure

Ryan Naraine

The most important disclosure is of my employment with Kaspersky Lab as a member of the global research and analysis team. Kaspersky Lab is a global company specializing in anti-malware and secure content management technologies. I do not own stocks or other investments in any technology company.

Biography

Ryan Naraine

Ryan Naraine is a journalist and social media enthusiast specializing in Internet and computer security issues. He is currently security evangelist at Kaspersky Lab, an anti-malware company with operations around the globe. He is taking a leadership role in developing the company's online community initiative around secure content management technologies.

Prior to joining Kaspersky Lab, Ryan was Editor-at-Large/Security at eWEEK, leading the magazine's and Web site's coverage of Internet and computer security issues and managing the popular SecurityWatch blog, covering the daily threats, vulnerabilities and IT security technologies. He also covered IT security, hacker attacks and secure content management topics for Jupiter Media's internetnetnews.com.

Ryan can be reached at naraine SHIFT 2 gmail.com. For daily updates on Ryan's activities, follow him on Twitter.

Related Discussions on TechRepublic

Did you know you can take part in these discussions with your ZDNet membership?
113
Comments

Join the conversation!

Just In

RE: Microsoft to ship emergency IE, Visual Studio patches
birumut Updated - 2nd May 2011
Well done! Thank you very much for professional templates and community edition
seslisohbet seslichat
0 Votes
+ -
Why not patch it now
Randalllind Updated - 27th Jul 2009
If it is such an emergency why wait? I think patch Tuesdays is stupid.

They should release patches on going. We can't patch a hole cause it not the one Tuesday of the month is dumb. This time we will make a excepting and call it an emergency.


Firefox patches within days of holes. This is why I don't use IE.
0 Votes
+ -
Most likely testing.
ye 27th Jul 2009
If it is such an emergency why wait? I think patch Tuesdays is stupid.

Patch Tuesday was implemented as a result of customer feedback.
0 Votes
+ -
One "standard" patch-tuesday cycle for the corporate customer and then "as needed" for the consumer. I dont see why consumers should have to wait to the first tuesday of each month but for corporate customers makes perfect sense (reliable, able to test, etc).
...reverse engineering the patches.
0 Votes
+ -
Well.....
todbran@... 27th Jul 2009
they didn't ask me for my feedback and I think it sucks.
0 Votes
+ -
You like anything M$
Wintel BSOD 28th Jul 2009
So what else is new....
0 Votes
+ -
And you hate anything MSFT
Michael Alan Goff 29th Jul 2009
So why should we listen to you either? happy
0 Votes
+ -
Because you're doing it right now
Wintel BSOD 29th Jul 2009
With no critical reasoning skills whatsoever...

LOL... grin
0 Votes
+ -
I read, I observe...
Michael Alan Goff 29th Jul 2009
and then I laugh at idiotic fanboys who think they're cool by using M$. Don't worry, I laugh at the people who say stupid things about any other OS, too.
0 Votes
+ -
It's not a matter of being cool
Wintel BSOD 29th Jul 2009
M$ gave me the shaft over Viista.

I never forget...
0 Votes
+ -
I'nm using Vista SP2 on a cheapo
Michael Alan Goff 31st Jul 2009
It came from Walmart. Seriously, did Vista rape you or something?
0 Votes
+ -
msft is patching it now
jerryz58 Updated - 28th Jul 2009
They have regular Patch Tuesdays (2nd Tuesday of every month). When there is an emergency, they release an out-of-band patch. Which is what this current release is all about. This is not the first time that they have done out-of-band. Nor will it be the last.

For normal stuff, Patch Tuesday works. For emergencies, out-of-band works.
0 Votes
+ -
People Still Use IE?????
itanalyst2@... 27th Jul 2009
Amazing.
...when browsing the web. At least on Vista.
0 Votes
+ -
Since most......
todbran@... 27th Jul 2009
still use XP because Vista sucks, your response is negated.
  • Flagged
still use XP because Vista sucks, your response is negated.

Plus it would be nice if you could put some original thought into your responses. Repeating the same, tired, wrong, mantra about Windows is lame.
  • Flagged
0 Votes
+ -
Hmmmmm....
KeithAu001 27th Jul 2009
Will all you geeks pleeeeeeeeeease take your cat fights OFF line!!!!!!!!
0 Votes
+ -
I Heard That!
zdnet-gregc 27th Jul 2009
@KeithAu001 says: "Will all you geeks pleeeeeeeeeease take your cat fights OFF line!!!!!!!!"

I realize I'm p*issing into the wind but I'll second that: Please take the pointless and unhelpful argumentation elsewhere.
0 Votes
+ -
You boys must be new here.
mgp3 27th Jul 2009
nt
0 Votes
+ -
Hear hear
jerryz58 28th Jul 2009
@KeithAu001 and @zdnet-gregc,

Let me second your wise notions. I could care less if we are allegedly "new here". I know wisdom when I hear it.
0 Votes
+ -
OK, how's this.....
todbran@... 27th Jul 2009
for originality. At my 3 computer repair centers, I have employees and a majority of my customers that all say Vista sucks. I am friends with a Windows rep that says Vista sucks. MS themselves says Vista sucks because of how fast they are getting Windows 7 ready for prime time. Windows ME was a disaster for MS which is why XP came along so quickly. And now Vista has inherited the reputation of ME which is why 7 is on its way so quickly. Geez, you're right, originality is the best way to go.
  • Flagged
0 Votes
+ -
Re: OK, how's this.....
neverhome 27th Jul 2009
Been using Vista Home Premium and Visual studio on an average laptop for a little over a year. No major problems. Don't like it as well as XP, but it's a good OS.
  • Flagged
0 Votes
+ -
and come out with crap like that. I didn't think a 12 year old could manage that.
0 Votes
+ -
Probably one like Geek Squad...
Marty R. Milette 28th Jul 2009
Where they couldn't find a problem with a PC if you beat them over the head with it.

Plenty of incompetents hanging out shingles claiming to be 'repair shops' or 'computer professionals'.

Maybe he will post his Microsoft Transcript Sharing Code -- and I'll do the same -- everyone can compare...
0 Votes
+ -
Hey...
Wintel BSOD 28th Jul 2009
...that's the crap he's dealt with. Can't say I blame him.
0 Votes
+ -
wait hold up a second
JamesDoyle 28th Jul 2009
you run not one, but three repair centres, and yet you dont realize that the "up" button was not removed, and was actually improved?

how about you stop listening to the retarded customers who dont know what they are doing (and thus are continually bringing their machines in to be fixed) and sit down and use the products and form your own opinion instead of "well these guys told me it sucks".

3 years after vista launched is not "rushed", 1995, 1998, 2000, 2006 and now 7 will be launched at the end of 2009. notice a pattern there with the release dates? 2000 had 3 versions squeezed in there. 2000 which was meant for servers and possibly some corporate, ME was targetting the retards with the safety and rollback features, and xp was for everyone else. ME flopped however due to some software compatability issues, and the retards went to XP.

windows 7 is pretty much vista at its core, but with things adjusted and added to it in response to consumer input. a 3 year development cycle hardly seems rushed considering the above.
0 Votes
+ -
As we've said already...
scorchgeek 28th Jul 2009
Windows 7 is being released on a normal timeframe.
Microsoft doesn't necessarily think Vista sucks,
but they realize their customers don't want it and
they need to come up with something new to keep
their customers happy. And I'd be happy to see
Microsoft lose more market share--it encourages
competition.
0 Votes
+ -
You obviously are lying...
CrashPad 28th Jul 2009
Nobody this ignorant about Vista can be running three repair centers and still be open for business.
Ive run Vista since Jan 2007, Drivers the only issue, and that was fixed before SP1
0 Votes
+ -
How do you know?
Wintel BSOD 28th Jul 2009
Do you run a repair center? Have you been in his shoes?
0 Votes
+ -
negated
tmsbrdrs 28th Jul 2009
Whether or not the dislike for Vista can still be justified, the fact is there are still a huge amount of people who do not use Vista for the reasons listed.

Add onto it that the vast majority of Windows users are in China and Korea and other countries where the larger portion of the population is dictated to have to use a certain OS and also where the vast majority of the population is too poor to purchase a legal copy of that OS (means their hardware isn't "Vista capable" either since that costs money). What you end up with is the largest portion of the world using XP where IE8 doesn't have nearly the same impact.

Besides, in Vista, IE is still tied into the OS. That means all it takes is one vulnerability before the bad guy has control of your machine. If he doesn't install anything until after he's disabled UAC, you'll never even know it. At least with Firefox and Chrome and Opera they aren't so heavily tied into the OS that a single vulnerability can take it down.
0 Votes
+ -
Vista sucks?
slofsjes@... 28th Jul 2009
I had to replace my computer in a hurry and got one that has Vista Home Premium on it. It is different from XP, I have to learn some new things. Sometimes it takes a bit of logical thinking. I am your proverbial 73 year old grannie who never took a computer class in her life. For me, Vista does not suck at all. Maybe people just need an enquiring mind and a little patience.
0 Votes
+ -
People hate change for the most part. When Vista came out it had issues with drivers and software but, for the most part it has fixed.

People may call me dumb but I have disable the UAC (User Account Control)thing that ask questions every time you do something. I found this to be the cause of most of my issues when enable.
At least, this way I can use a much finer-grained security layer to 'wrap' sites that require IE to work properly. I'm amazed that developers still write IE-specific code for their sites!
0 Votes
+ -
What "we" develop for
killroy42 Updated - 28th Jul 2009
I'm a web developer. I develop on Firefox, due
to Firebug. I'd use Chrome otherwise, simply
because it starts up more quickly. Any web
developer who does not rely on Firebug wouldn't
even get past the interview stage with me. I
check sites on IE6 as I develop because it's so
bloody quirky. When the site is done, I fire up
my Vista VM with IE7 to take a quick look and
shut it down as fast as I can. That's that. A
Firefox/Chrome/IE6 compatible site that is
properly build works 98% of the time on IE7. IE8
better work on its own or it can get stuffed.
Any developer that builds for IE doesn't know
what they're doing, and wouldn't get hired by an
experienced lead.
0 Votes
+ -
Still Many Sites Are IE Only
EBathory 29th Jul 2009
I agree with you. In today's climate a properly built site should not state "You must use IE 6 or higher". Yet this has been the case on several websites where my husband has been applying for jobs. I feel like writing the developer and asking where he/she has been the last several years.

Unbelievable.
0 Votes
+ -
ie in a tab?
zclayton3 28th Jul 2009
what is the procedure?
0 Votes
+ -
Probably means uses FF add-on: IE tab
valvestate@... Updated - 28th Jul 2009
I don't think you can actually open an app like you can open a text file in a browser, but there is the add-on IE Tab https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1419
0 Votes
+ -
right behind...
wel51x 27th Jul 2009
...FF, Saf, Seamonkey, Chrome
0 Votes
+ -
with a list of caveats... LOL

Browsing the web with IE? Are you sure that's safe? Maybe not quite as safe as browsing a help file system

ROFLMAO

Probably safer to use IE on Vista than on Linux, that one's a slam dunk wink

People say the funniest things here. It's my best entertainment venue, that's for sure...
0 Votes
+ -
Such as?
ye 28th Jul 2009
with a list of caveats... LOL

Your post was completely void of anything refuting what I wrote.
0 Votes
+ -
I wasn't refuting what you wrote
jacarter3 28th Jul 2009
Fool!

You didn't write anything with more information than this statement:

"My Ford Pinto is the safest car on the road, as long as it's crated and boxed before shipping..."

Keep it up though. The humor is priceless happy
0 Votes
+ -
What are your sources for that?
B.O.F.H. 28th Jul 2009
depending on where you find your data, the following link indicates that the safest browser (between IE, Opera, Firefox and Chrome) was Chrome. In tests that involved IE, Firefox, Opera and Safari, IE tended to come out favorably. It really depends on what was being tested and how the browser was designed.
0 Votes
+ -
Ever heard of Secunia?...
JCitizen Updated - 28th Jul 2009
They list the same vulnerabilities for Chrome as the other big ones. Java and Adobe the culprit.

Vista IE8 x64 has only a relatively low risk cross-scripting vulnerability.

Even if you use NoScript on FF, you have to give permission to a site some day. When you do that, with now 20 to 30 thousand sites, and climbing, who have been pwned; you expose yourself to at least two of the vulnerabilities while on Vista OS.

Looks like Vista is finally pulling ahead in the security race. But it is Adobe and Java that has helped put it there.
0 Votes
+ -
Only on state government sites
Randalllind 27th Jul 2009
I use IE to reapply for food stamps, medical needed etc. They are the only site that the applications etc are all in active X. So if you don't have IE you would have to go down to their offices and use the ones in the lobby.
0 Votes
+ -
Development
KeithAu001 27th Jul 2009
One thing that people don't understand is that ALL browsers are different.

The problem with sites NOT working in some browsers is in the development stage. SOME Web developers don't or wont test the sites they build in ALL popular browsers, and therefore they risk the site not being compatible.

Until such time as the dropkicks do their jobs properly, there will always be failures. To a certain point, they are NOT fulfilling their contractual agreement with the companies that they build the sites for. It is time that web developers went back to college and train properly, and understand what their duties really are ALL or their duties!
0 Votes
+ -
Development Mk II
KeithAu001 27th Jul 2009
If developers were to use multiple platform, and multiple browser compatible software instead of ONLY Microsoft compatible software, it would be a very good start to have sites that work across ALL computers.. MS, MAC, Linux, IE, Firefox, Opera, Safari.

Find the browser that is the most compliant with W3C specifications, and you have a good browser.

Find a developer who does test his/her sites in all browsers and you have a good developer.

Find a site that works in all of the popular browsers, and you have a good site.

It is impossible to have 100% secure software, as ALL software is vulnerable to exploits, while there are criminals out there whose only goal in life is to make other peoples lives miserable and creates the problems.

Microsoft software is the most vulnerable only because it is the most widely used software. If you want to cause the most havoc you target the busiest area, in the case of software, it is MS.
0 Votes
+ -
good call...and:
NT-Services@... 28th Jul 2009
many sites use ActiveX not because the IE platform is good, nor secure, but because it is prevalent in the industry. My personal recommendations are to use Firefox (which does not support ActiveX)as a browser and IE7 only when necessary to view sites which use ActiveX with NO other addons. The IE sites which require ActiveX will prompt you to download and install the ActiveX component. If you get other prompts to install software to make the browser functional for use on a site, question this and contact a reputable IT/IS person and pick their brain for a moment. Alternatively, use Firefox or similar browser to Google up info on the software in question. Avoid the installation of .NET 3.5 SP1, Windows XP SP3, and IE8 at all costs. If you must use a Microsoft operating system i recommend Windows XP Professional SP2 which has been and continues to remain somewhat stable given lots of resources available. XP SP2 has been with us for the last 8 years with only the ongoing security patches and fixes released on a fairly regular basis to sustain XP's functionality in the face of constant exploits of its many vulnerabilities. Refusing to install SP3 will prevent some major problems but you will still continue to get the security patches for SP2 as they are made available. IE7 is as stable as it is ever going to be. IE8 has some major problems, and .NET 3.5 SP1 opens major security vulnerabilities allowing software to be installed through any browser without your consent or interaction (bypassing the built-in security feature designed to prevent such behavior in Firefox) keep addons in ANY browser down to a minimum and you will have better experiences all around...
0 Votes
+ -
XP SP3 is worth it. It doesnt break anything - take the tin foil hat off please and stop spreading FUD. XP SP3 is fine, .NET is fine - but then again I run Vista...so I left that XP train a LONG time ago.
0 Votes
+ -
Well done! Thank you very much for professional templates and community edition
seslisohbet seslichat

Join the conversation!

Formatting +
BB Codes - Note: HTML is not supported in forums
  • [b] Bold [/b]
  • [i] Italic [/i]
  • [u] Underline [/u]
  • [s] Strikethrough [/s]
  • [q] "Quote" [/q]
  • [ol][*] 1. Ordered List [/ol]
  • [ul][*] · Unordered List [/ul]
  • [pre] Preformat [/pre]
  • [quote] "Blockquote" [/quote]
ie8 fix
Click Here
ie8 fix

The best of ZDNet, delivered

ZDNet Newsletters

Get the best of ZDNet delivered straight to your inbox

Facebook Activity

White Papers, Webcasts, & Resources
ie8 fix
ie8 fix