ZDI-09-071: Microsoft Internet Explorer writing-mode Memory Corruption Vulnerability http://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-09-071 October 13, 2009 -- CVE ID: CVE-2009-2531 -- Affected Vendors: Microsoft -- Affected Products: Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 -- TippingPoint(TM) IPS Customer Protection: TippingPoint IPS customers have been protected against this vulnerability by Digital Vaccine protection filter ID 8654. For further product information on the TippingPoint IPS, visit: http://www.tippingpoint.com -- Vulnerability Details: This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on vulnerable installations of Microsoft Internet Explorer. User interaction is required in that a user must visit a malicious web page. The specific flaw exists in the parsing of CSS style information. When a writing-mode style is used with a specific combination of HTML tags, memory corruption occurs. Exploitation of this vulnerability will lead to remote system compromise under the credentials of the currently logged in user. -- Vendor Response: Microsoft has issued an update to correct this vulnerability. More details can be found at: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms09-054.mspx -- Disclosure Timeline: 2009-06-23 - Vulnerability reported to vendor 2009-10-13 - Coordinated public release of advisory -- Credit: This vulnerability was discovered by: * Sam Thomas of eshu.co.uk -- About the Zero Day Initiative (ZDI): Established by TippingPoint, The Zero Day Initiative (ZDI) represents a best-of-breed model for rewarding security researchers for responsibly disclosing discovered vulnerabilities. Researchers interested in getting paid for their security research through the ZDI can find more information and sign-up at: http://www.zerodayinitiative.com The ZDI is unique in how the acquired vulnerability information is used. TippingPoint does not re-sell the vulnerability details or any exploit code. Instead, upon notifying the affected product vendor, TippingPoint provides its customers with zero day protection through its intrusion prevention technology. Explicit details regarding the specifics of the vulnerability are not exposed to any parties until an official vendor patch is publicly available. Furthermore, with the altruistic aim of helping to secure a broader user base, TippingPoint provides this vulnerability information confidentially to security vendors (including competitors) who have a vulnerability protection or mitigation product. Our vulnerability disclosure policy is available online at: http://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/disclosure_policy/