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Safari "Carpet Bomb" Attack Code Released
snydeq writes "A hacker has posted attack code that exploits critical flaws in the Safari and Internet Explorer Web browsers. The source code can be used to run unauthorized software on a victim's machine, and could be used by criminals in Web-based computer attacks, security experts say. The public example of the attack code allows attackers to litter a victim's desktop with executable files, an attack known as 'carpet bombing.' In combination with bugs in Windows and Internet Explorer, attackers can run unauthorized software on a victim's computer."
RTFA. Actually, it looks like this is a windows problem. Safari automatically downloads a file to the desktop. Then when you start Internet Explorer it runs the file on your desktop and there is the problem.
So the real issue is that Safari can be told to automatically download a file while internet explorer will automatically run a malicious dll from the desktop. actual post and proof-of-concept code here.
seems like a misleading summary to me.
This is a _Windows_ Safari problem, not an _OS X_ Safari problem. And yes I RTFBlogPost.
Here are two very quick temp' workarounds for the issue.
1) Launch IE from a location other than your desktop (e.g. Start Menu, Quick Launch Tray).
2) Go to Program Files\Internet Explorer, Create Shortcut, and then place that shortcut on your desktop. Make sure the "Start In" setting is set to any location other than your Desktop.
So the real issue is that Safari can be told to automatically download a file while internet explorer will automatically run a malicious dll from the desktop. actual post and proof-of-concept code here.
seems like a misleading summary to me. IE won't run anything "automatically." It sounds like the problem is that Safari both autodownloads to the desktop and then tells IE to open that file on its next load.
"I zero-index my hamsters" - Willtor (147206)
Best workaround is to use Firefox.
The price is always right if someone else is paying.
IE will load its DLLs automatically. If the current PATH contains the DLL, IE will use that version instead of the system version.
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
The problem originated from an error that Windows Internet Explorer will load some program library files(DLL) from user's Desktop instead of its own library file folder(usually C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32). Apple's Safari for Windows downloads and saves requested file to user's Desktop by default - this default behavior itself does not constitute a mistake.
The 'workarounds' suggested by MS include "Change the download location of content in Safari to a newly created directory". I don't actually know what's going on with this, but it seems like it's IE opening an improperly-named (or maybe there's some bad meta-data that comes along with it?) file from the desktop, no matter how it got there.
Read Slashdot: Microsoft Urges Windows Users To Shun Safari - it explains what happens in more detail.
Basically, on Windows Safari automatically downloads files, in imitation of its behavior on OSX, but whereas on OSX it downloads them to a nice ~/Downloads directory on Windows it downloads them to the desktop. Also, on OSX Safari tags the downloaded file as 'unsafe', but it fails to use the Windows functionality to do the same on Windows. This leaves a whole load of files that you never asked for or wanted lying around on your computer in a state that is one step away from being executed.
This 'attack' allows a malicious person to force Safari to dump thousands of files on your desktop, which in and of itself is not a nice thing, but when coupled with other exploits it can lead to code execution of these files you never wanted in the first place - whether those exploits are patched by the vendor (Microsoft) or not, we both know that a significant portion of desktops are not kept fully up-to-date with security releases.
very informative.
If Windows has an "unsafe" flag for files, it should be used by Safari. Also, I find using desktop as default download space incredibly annoying (yes, i'm looking at you firefox).
That said, IE should also know better than to execute random files from the desktop, which seems like the nastier issue here.
I'd say it is a security flaw in Safari, but for different reasons. As the same blog explains, you could have Safari download an executable to the desktop that pretends to be e.g. Internet Explorer. If they normally launch IE from the desktop, they could click the fake IE next time, running arbitrary code.
So yes, IE is in fact autoloading executables from the desktop. It's Safari's vulnerability to carpet bombing that sets the stage, but it's IE and Windows that cause the big boom.
This space intentionally left blank.
Personally I think the bigger issue is that Safari will auto-download, auto-mark-safe, and auto-run files silently. IE's broken too, but either one of the players involved could render this exploit moot. Let's see who responds first before stoning someone to death.
I still don't see why someone would be browsing around in safari and then open up IE. A regular user's likely to only use his favorite browser and a dev who needs to view the same site in multiple browsers would probably notice that there're a bunch of new .dll files all over the desktop.
This is exactly what is happening.
/Users/user/Downloads. Wouldn't be hard to change WinSafari to do the same, but it would almost be an admission of fault to all the IE fanboys.
And yet this is listed as a Safari flaw?
Come on, how insanely insecure is it to run executable code from the desktop! Hasn't windows had protection on the windows and system32 directories for about 6 billion years now for this very reason? And then they go and make it pull executable code from just about the least secure place on any PC.
From where I'm sitting this is a massively Microsoft problem, but their suggested "fix" is still the easiest solution by far. But its a bandaid to a gaping oversight.
Safari on the mac defaults to
Carpet bombing is still an issue, if for no reason than it is an annoyance.