November 19th, 2009

Inside the Google Chrome OS security model

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 11:54 am

Categories: Apple, Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Hackers, Microsoft, Open source, Passwords, Patch Watch, Responsible disclosure, Viruses and Worms, Vulnerability research, iPhone

Tags: Google Inc., Operating System, Web Browser, Google Chrome, Attack, End Goal, Web Browsers, Operating Systems, Security, Internet

Google plans to use a combination of system hardening, process isolation, verified boot, secure auto-update and encryption to thwart malicious hackers from planting malware on its new Google Chrome OS. Read the rest of this entry »

November 19th, 2009

Microsoft finds security hole in Google Chrome Frame

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 9:49 am

Categories: Anti Virus, Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Google, Google Chrome, Malware, Microsoft, Open source, Patch Watch

Tags: Google Inc., Microsoft Corp., Google Chrome, Web Browsers, Security, Viruses And Worms, Internet, Ryan Naraine

Back in September, when Google launched the Google Chrome Frame plug-in for Internet Explorer users, Microsoft immediately warned that the move would increase the attack surface and make IE users less secure.

Now comes word that a security researcher in the Microsoft Vulnerability Research (MSVR) has discovered a “high risk” security vulnerability that could allow an attacker to bypass cross-origin protections. Read the rest of this entry »

November 18th, 2009

Mozilla locks out rogue Firefox add-ons

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 10:33 am

Categories: Anti Virus, Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Firefox, Malware, Microsoft, Mozilla, Open source, Patch Watch, Vulnerability research

Tags: Mozilla Firefox, Mozilla Corp., Migration Document, Web Browsers, Internet, Ryan Naraine

Mozilla has made a significant tweak to this Firefox 3.6 code base to block rogue add-ons from loading in the browser’s application components directory.

This will most certainly block developers and software vendors from silently installing Firefox add-ons without explicit user permission.  It will also significantly reduce browser crashes linked to third-party add-ons, Mozilla said. Read the rest of this entry »

November 9th, 2009

Mac OS X mega patch covers 58 security vulnerabilities

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 2:17 pm

Categories: Adobe, Apple, Arbitrary Code Execution, Botnets, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Malware, Open source, Passwords, Patch Watch

Tags: Security, Apple Macintosh, Apple Mac OS X V10.6 Snow Leopard, Update, Mac OS X Server, Server, Issue, Arbitrary Code Execution, Impact, Adaptive Firewall Description

Apple has dropped another mega-patch to cover a total of 58 documented vulnerabilities affecting the Mac OS X ecosystem.

The majority of the flaws could allow a remote attacker to gain complete control of an unpatched system, meaning that this update carries an “extremely critical rating.” Read the rest of this entry »

November 6th, 2009

High-risk flaw dings Google Chrome

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 9:18 am

Categories: Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Google, Google Chrome, Open source, Patch Watch, Responsible disclosure

Tags: Google Inc., Web Browser, Google Chrome, Arbitrary Code Execution, Details, Web Browsers, Security, Internet, Ryan Naraine

Google has pushed out a Chrome browser update to fix a pair of security vulnerabilities that expose uses to malicious hacker attacks.

One of the flaws carry a “high-risk” rating because of the threat of arbitrary code execution.  Read the rest of this entry »

October 28th, 2009

Opera browser dinged by code execution flaw

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 9:18 am

Categories: Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Firefox, Malware, Mozilla, Open source, Passwords, Patch Watch

Tags: Opera Browser, Flaw, Opera Software ASA, Web Browser, Domain Names, Web Browsers, Patches, Security, Internet, Ryan Naraine

Mozilla isn’t the only alternative browser maker struggling with serious security problems.

On the same day Mozilla shipped a Firefox update to fix multiple critical vulnerabilities, Opera dropped a major patch to fix three documented flaws, including a memory corruption issue that exposes users to code execution attacks. Read the rest of this entry »

October 28th, 2009

Firefox hit by multiple drive-by download flaws

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 7:34 am

Categories: Arbitrary Code Execution, Botnets, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Firefox, Malware, Mozilla, Open source, Passwords, Patch Watch, Privacy, Responsible disclosure, Vulnerability research

Tags: Mozilla Firefox, Attacker, Flaw, Vulnerability, Web Browser, Mozilla Corp., Web Browsers, Security, Internet, Ryan Naraine

Mozilla’s flagship Firefox browser is vulnerable to at least 11 “critical” vulnerabilities that expose users to drive-by download attacks that require no user interaction beyond normal browsing.

The open-source group shipped Firefox 3.5.4 with patches for the vulnerabilities, which range from code execution risk to the theft of information in the browser’s form history. Read the rest of this entry »

October 19th, 2009

Microsoft: Human error caused critical SMB2 vulnerability

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 9:35 am

Categories: Adobe, Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Complex Attacks, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Flash, Hackers, Malware, Microsoft, Mozilla, Open source, Pen testing, Punditocracy, Responsible disclosure

Tags: Analysis Tool, Vulnerability, Bug, Microsoft Corp., Humans, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows 7, Productivity, Operating Systems, Security

Microsoft is blaming human error for one of the critical SMB v2 vulnerabilities that exposed Windows users to remote code execution attacks and argues that it’s near impossible to catch these types of bugs with existing code review tools and techniques.

According to a post-mortem of the issue by Redmond security guru Michael Howard (right), the company detected the vulnerable code “very late” in the Windows 7 development process but argued that there are no static analysis tools or SDL requirements that would spot this type of human error.

Read the rest of this entry »

October 19th, 2009

Mozilla blocks (then unblocks) dangerous MS .NET Firefox add-on

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 5:29 am

Categories: Adobe, Anti Virus, Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Firefox, Google, Google Chrome, Malware, Microsoft, Mozilla, Open source, Patch Watch, Pen testing, Uncategorized

Tags: Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Corp., Mozilla Corp., Add-on, Web Browsers, Spyware, Adware & Malware, Cyberthreats, Security, Viruses And Worms, Internet

FINAL UPDATE: In the Threatpost podcast above, Mozilla’s Mike Shaver explains what happened (.mp3)

[ UPDATE: Mozilla has now removed the extension from the blocklist after Microsoft clarified some information in its bulletin on how Firefox users were affected.  I'll attempt to get to the bottom of what appears to be a case of miscommunication ]

Mozilla has added the Microsoft .NET Framework Assistant add-on to its blacklist, a move that effectively disables the dangerous extension and plug-in for all Firefox users.

The move comes in the wake of an admission from Microsoft that the add-on was exposing users to drive-by malware downloads via a remote code execution vulnerability. Read the rest of this entry »

October 16th, 2009

Oracle to fix 38 database, product vulnerabilities

Posted by Ryan Naraine @ 10:12 am

Categories: Arbitrary Code Execution, Browsers, Data theft, Denial of Service (DoS), Exploit code, Locally Running Web Servers, Open source, Oracle, Passwords, Responsible disclosure, Vulnerability research

Tags: Database, Oracle Corp., Vulnerability, Authentication, Security, Ryan Naraine

Oracle has announced plans to ship a Critical Patch Update (CPU) with fixes for at least 38 security vulnerabilities in a wide range of database and server products.

The most serious vulnerabilities (CVSS score of 10.0) affect Oracle Core RDBMS, Oracle JRockit and Oracle Network Authentication. The patches are due on Tuesday, October 20, 2009.

Read the rest of this entry »