Wednesday, November 12, 2008
In its monthly security bulletin, Microsoft has identified four vulnerabilities which could lead to a data security breach.
Issuing two patches to address the problems - one rated critical and one important - the company announced that XML Core Services and Internet Explorer were vulnerable.
So too, hackers could exploit the flaw labelled important at the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol level, potentially leading to a network security breach and arbitrary remote code execution.
Commenting on the critical fault, the company claimed: "The most severe vulnerability could allow remote code execution if a user viewed a specially crafted web page using Internet Explorer."
Meanwhile, the fault could also allow for an elevation of privileges and the creation of new accounts.
Network World has reported that vulnerabilities are well known in security circles.
The critical bug was publicly exposed nearly two years ago by Polish network security researcher Michal Zalewski.
Analysts talking to Network World said that it is a wonder that hackers have not been exploiting the flaw in the wild.
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