Microsoft Security Bulletin: November 11 2008 Security Bulletin

November 11, 2008 - Qualys^® Vulnerability R&D Lab has released new vulnerability checks in QualysGuard^® to protect organizations against 2 new vulnerabilities present in Microsoft Windows that were announced today. Customers can immediately audit their networks for these and other new vulnerabilities by accessing their QualysGuard subscription.

Microsoft has released 2 security patches to fix newly discovered flaws in Microsoft Windows.

Qualys has released the following checks for these new vulnerabilities:

Microsoft SMB Could Allow Remote Code Execution
SEVERITY: Critical  4
QUALYS ID: 90467
VENDOR REFERENCE: MS08-068
CVE REFERENCE: CVE-2008-4037
CVSS SCORES: Base 10/ Temporal 7.8
THREAT: Microsoft Windows is prone to a vulnerability that could let attackers replay NTLM credentials over the SMB protocol. The security update addresses the vulnerability by modifying the way that SMB authentication replies are validated to prevent the replay of credentials. This vulnerability can be exploited via replay attacks to gain access with the privileges of the user whose credentials are being resent. Microsoft has tested the following workarounds: Block TCP ports 139 and 445 at the firewall Blocking TCP ports 139 and 445 at the firewall will help protect systems that are behind that firewall from attempts to exploit this vulnerability. Enable SMB signing Enabling SMB signing prevents the attacker from executing code in the context of the logged-on user. This vulnerability requires that a user with an affected version of SMB access a malicious server. An attacker would have to host a specially crafted server share or Web site. An attacker would have no way to force users to visit a specially crafted server share or Web site. Instead, an attacker would have to convince them to visit the server share or Web site, typically by getting them to click a link in an e-mail message or Instant Messenger message that takes them to the attacker's site.
IMPACT: An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.
SOLUTION: Microsoft released security bulletin MS08-068 to address this issue. Refer to the bulletin for further details. Microsoft has rated this vulnerability as Important.

Microsoft XML Core Services Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
SEVERITY: Urgent  5
QUALYS ID: 90466
VENDOR REFERENCE: MS08-069
CVE REFERENCE: CVE-2007-0099, CVE-2008-4029, CVE-2008-4033
CVSS SCORES: Base 10/ Temporal 7.8
THREAT: This security update resolves several vulnerabilities in Microsoft XML Core Services. The most severe vulnerability could allow remote code execution if a user views a specially-crafted Web page using Internet Explorer. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.
IMPACT: An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could take complete control of the affected system.
SOLUTION: Microsoft released security bulletin MS08-069 to address this issue. Microsoft has rated this issue as Critical.

This new vulnerability check is included in Qualys vulnerability signatures v1.22.53-3. Each QualysGuard account is automatically updated with the latest vulnerability signatures as they become available. To view the vulnerability signature version in your account, from the QualysGuard HOME menu, select the Account Info tab.

SELECTIVE SCAN INSTRUCTIONS USING QUALYSGUARD:

To perform a selective vulnerability scan, configure a scan profile to use the following options:

1. Ensure access to TCP ports 135 and 139 are available.
2. Enable Windows Authentication (specify Authentication Records).
3. Enable the following Qualys IDs:
   • 90466
   • 90467
4. If you would like the scan to return the Windows Hostname, also include QID 82044 and ensure access to UDP port 137 is available.
5. If you would like to be notified if QualysGuard is unable to logon to a host (if Authentication fails), also include QID 105015.

In addition, prior to running a scan for these new vulnerabilities, you can estimate your exposure to these new threats by running the Risk Matrix Report, available from the QualysGuard HOME page.

For more information, customers may contact Qualys Technical Support directly at support@qualys.com or by telephone toll free at:
US: 1 866.801.6161 | EMEA: 33 1 44.17.00.41 | UK: +44 1753 872102

QualysGuard is an on-demand security audit service delivered over the web that enables organizations to effectively manage their vulnerabilities and maintain control over their network security with centralized reports, verified remedies, and full remediation workflow capabilities with trouble tickets. QualysGuard provides comprehensive reports on vulnerabilities including severity levels, time to fix estimates and impact on business, plus trend analysis on security issues. By continuously and proactively monitoring all network access points, QualysGuard dramatically reduces security managers' time researching, scanning and fixing network exposures and enables companies to eliminate network vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.

Access for QualysGuard customers: https://qualysguard.qualys.com

Free trial of QualysGuard service: http://www.qualys.com/forms/trials/qualysguard_trial/