New Windows worm directed at developers??????
Microsoft is investigating a report of a new, unpatched flaw in Internet Explorer that could expose users of the ubiquitous Web browser to attacks.
An attacker could craft a malicious Web site that takes advantage of the flaw and gain control over the PCs that visit the Web site or install malicious software on those systems, a representative of the French Security Incident Response Team (FrSIRT) said in an e-mail interview Wednesday. FrSIRT rates the issue "critical," its most serious classification.
Exploit code for the flaw is available on the Internet, according to FrSIRT, a security research organization. The availability of exploit code typically raises the risk to users because it could aid miscreants in setting up attacks.
Microsoft is investigating the report of the new IE flaw, a representative of the company said in a statement late Wednesday. The software maker is not aware of attacks that use the reported flaw, she said. After the investigation, Microsoft will take the appropriate action to protect users, which could include a security update, she said.
Internet security monitoring company Websense has added detection mechanisms for this latest potential IE flaw to its software. As of Wednesday afternoon the company had not found any malicious Web sites that take advantage of it, said Dan Hubbard, senior director of security and research at Websense in San Diego.
The flaw is similar to security vulnerabilities Microsoft fixed as part of its monthly patch release last week and in July, the FrSIRT representative said. The problem exists because IE inappropriately lets Web sites instantiate other pieces of Microsoft software on the PC.
It is not clear which users may be at risk. Exploiting this flaw requires a file called "Msdds.dll" to be present on the Windows PC. FrSIRT is still investigating how common that file is. It appears to be installed with Microsoft's Visual Studio developer tools, but it may also be installed with more common software, the FrSIRT representative said.
Oh great, a worm directed at developers...........ok, not really serious about a worm directed at developers, but the vulnerability does exist.