Slashdot Mirror
Shockwave Vulnerabilities Affect More Than 450 Million Systems
Trinity writes "Researchers from VUPEN have discovered critical vulnerabilities in Adobe Shockwave, a technology installed on over 450 million Internet-enabled desktops. The vulnerabilities could allow remote code execution by tricking a user into visiting a web page using Internet Explorer or even Mozilla Firefox. Version 11.5.1.601 as well as earlier ones are affected. The vendor recommends upgrading to version 11.5.1.602." Especially sobering when you consider Adobe's current push to be essentially required as an intermediary player for anyone who wants to see certain government data.
Not just a good idea. It's the law.
As there are over a billion computers with Windows vulnerabilities and countless other "at risk" applications that get patched regularly this doesn't sound like a situation all that out of the ordinary. And as with Windows some users will update and some will remain at risk.
You could pretty much take any two security issue threads on here, swap the comments section, and never know the difference.
Software has bugs.
Some of them are security issues.
They get discovered.
They (usually) get fixed.
What's there to talk about?
As of posting, there's no MSI installer for the new version yet, and the .exe installer doesn't seem to support silent installs.
http://www.appdeploy.com/packages/detail.asp?id=1438
First dupe articles, now dupe posts!
Sometimes, life itself is sarcasm...
I find it harder and harder to really give a shit anymore. All of our systems (linux, Windows ,OSX) all have various automatic patching schemes. Once the vendor gets around to fixing their crap (Adobe in this case) we'll ingest the patch and move on.
Once upon a time I monitored the various security announcement lists but ultimately it didn't matter. Most of this crap has become mission critical so turning it off isn't an option, fixing it yourself is rarely and option so you're left with wait and patch solution.
I guess it's kind of free'ing. I no longer stress about it and focus on more relevant issues.
What's the difference between Shockwave and Flash?
Or are they the same thing? If so, why two names for it?
You're welcome.
If you're having problems installing the updated Shockwave player, it may be because you have Data Execution Prevention enabled.
To disable:
Look in the root of your C: drive for boot.ini.
Start a command line. Attrib c:\boot.ini -r -a -s -h
Edit boot.ini (In notepad)
Look for "noexecute=optin" and change it to "noexecute=AlwaysOff" (don't add or remove any spaces, line breaks, etc)
Save boot.ini.
In the command window type attrib c:\boot.ini +r +a +s +h
Reboot. DEP is now disabled.
Install the Shockwave Player update.
Re-edit boot.ini to re-enable Data Execution Prevention, and reboot once again.
Alternatively you can save a copy of the edited boot.ini, set the attribs to +r +a +s +h, and rename as necessary in case (read: when) you need to disable DEP again in the future.
I figure a lot of users are going to have this problem (again), as Adobe still hasn't fixed this bug.
To me this just seems like user stupidity. You can have your computer hijacked a million different ways however if you pay attention to what you click you can avoid most.
> Is he worried the gov will abuse this hole?
No. He's worried that that the government is going to make their data inaccessible to anyone who doesn't install a useless piece if junk that would make their computer insecure.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
I still don't get why they have two of these? Oh, I remember the Macromedia buyouts. I don't think I have Shockwave installed. I didn't think it was being used anymore.
It is much easier to patch 700 million PCs than it is to make stupid people smarter.
And we're clearly not doing such a good job of patching 700 million PCs.
Rich And Stupid is not so bad as Working For Rich And Stupid.
To disable:
Look in the root of your C: drive for boot.ini.
Start a command line. Attrib c:\boot.ini -r -a -s -h
Edit boot.ini (In notepad)
Look for "noexecute=optin" and change it to "noexecute=AlwaysOff" (don't add or remove any spaces, line breaks, etc)
Save boot.ini.
In the command window type attrib c:\boot.ini +r +a +s +h
Reboot. DEP is now disabled.
Install the Shockwave Player update.
If I hadn't looked closely I would have assumed this was a relatively painless set of steps an end user would need for doing some workaround in linux.
Actually, adobe has pissed me off many times. Shockwave, in particular, is a bitch to remove because Adobe gets all funky with file permissions - unnecessarily.
Even Adobe can't explain Shockwave properly.
Shockwave is a real 3D system usable as a decent game engine. At one time, it even had the Havok physics engine, but Adobe didn't keep up the payments and had to take that out. Try BMX Street Rider, which is a reasonably decent free-play game in a modest sized city. It's way ahead of the proposed hacks for doing 3D with Javascript.
What killed Shockwave for trivial applications is "LOADING..." problems. Flash can start before all the content has been loaded, because Flash has two interleaved streams, a timeline and assets. As soon as you have enough assets for the stuff needed by the timeline so far, Flash can go. So you can write Flash that starts fast and loads assets in the background.
Especially sobering when you consider Adobe's current push to be essentially required as an intermediary player for anyone who wants to see certain government data.
Adobe is pushing for Flash and PDF... not Shockwave and PDF...
1) Are there FOSS alternatives to Flash and/or Shockwave?
2) Why(not)?
3) If there was, would it help reduce problems like this?
Please don't mod me as trolling for asking questions!
Utilizing the synergization of benchmark e-solutions to pre-workaround action items!
I just dont use adobe products anymore, either flash, or shockwave, are too seriously integrated into our pcs, that when the day comes that skynet is self aware, that will be the first application it looks to to take over all pcs around the world....have we not learned anything from terminator?
I did too – then I realized that I didn't have Shockwave in the first place. I had Flash, which is different. Now I'm considering uninstalling Shockwave again, because I didn't need it before and I don't expect to need it in the future.
Are you sure you had it to begin with?
"Shockwave Flash" is Flash (plays .swf files). "Shockwave for Director" is Shockwave (uses .dcr files).
Yes, it's confusing. You can thank Adobe for that.
Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
Google Gnash and Swfdec; they're coming along nicely, but aren't 100% replacements as of yet.
"Our country is not nearly so overrun with the bigoted as it is overrun with the broadminded." -Archbishop Fulton Sheen
1. Yes/no.
2. See above. Nobody cares about Shockwave, though.
3. Yes.
It's called Gnash. See http://www.gnu.org/software/gnash/
There's also a few others, such as http://swfdec.freedesktop.org/wiki/ . Gnash is probably better.
I have developed a truly marvelous proof of this comment, which this signature is too narrow to contain.
Ok, I just compiled some stats on Shockwave version plugin distribution using roughly 30 million unique data points from July 1 of this year until about a week ago - here is roughly the distribution (includes IE/FF/etc. - all major browsers):
Not installed => 67.54%
11,0,0,0 => 2.86%
10,2,0,0 => 2.84%
10,1,0,0 => 2.59%
11,0,0,465 => 2.41%
11,5,0,0 => 2.05%
11,5,1,601 => 1.90%
8,5,1,0 => 1.75%
10,1,4,0 => 1.73%
11,0,0,429 => 1.58%
11,0,3,472 => 1.56%
10,1,1,0 => 1.53%
11,5,0,596 => 1.46%
11,5,0,600 => 1.38%
11,0,3,471 => 1.35%
11,5,0,595 => 1.21%
11,0,0,458 => 0.93%
10,3,0,0 => 0.78%
11,0,3,470 => 0.66%
8,0,0,0 => 0.43%
10,1,3,0 => 0.37%
8,5,0,0 => 0.32%
11,0,3,0 => 0.23%
10,0,0,0 => 0.16%
10,0,1,0 => 0.11%
7,0,0,0 => 0.10%
11,5,1,0 => 0.08%
10,4,0,0 => 0.04%
6,0,0,0 => 0.03%
What is potentially troubling is that there does not appear to be much in the way of upgrade movement in Shockwave installs. So if "Adobe Shockwave Player versions prior to 11.5.2.602" are truly at risk, we are talking about 30% of web users roughly.
I will publish a more in-depth report later today here: http://www.statowl.com/ in the plugin section. I have been neglecting that site anyways - time to update the stats - the past three month are absent - sigh....
Thanks, i've added those to my Del.ico.us for later investigation. :)
Utilizing the synergization of benchmark e-solutions to pre-workaround action items!
Would you believe, that's the second biggest rootkit I've ever seen?
Pretty much where I'm at while I continue to throw good coin at my local robocall entitlement company and diligently recycle dead trees hand delivered by my local robomail entitlement crown corp. There used to be a number of disposable single blade razors that worked well for me, all since driven out of the market. Now I lease my triple-blade manhood from Warren Buffett at triple the price.
Ah yes, the old "and loving it" trick.
***I'm a Linux user, you insensitive clod!***
Well, maybe Shockwave will run in WINE. Or VMplayer, vbox, or qemu. There must be 50 ways to get your Linux PC infected with Windows malware if you'd just try.
You can't see ANYTHING from a car, You've got to get out of the goddamned contraption and walk...Edward Abbey
I rarely see Web sites use Shockwave. And if I do, it usually games. 99% of the stuff I see are in Flash. If I need it, I will just reinstall, look/use, and then uninstall it.
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
IF you look in Firefox add-ons/plugins it will be listed as
"Shockwave for Director 11.5.2.602"
whereas regular flash player is listed as
"Shockwave Flash 10.0.32.18"
I don't think 450,000,000 desktops out there have a shockwave player installed? I doubt it is that popular.
As the island of our knowledge grows, so does the shore of our ignorance.
what exactly does "upgrade movement" mean?
That means that it would appear shockwave users do not frequently upgrade. They probably had to install the plugin to view something and then they forget about it. In this case, this may leave more people open to attack.
2. See above. Nobody cares about Shockwave, though.
Nay, say I and the (many) school districts who visit shockwave-only educational sites. Not having Shockwave Director available on Linux has cost me clients. Talk about a slap in the face for trying to give schools a break by using good software, because they are too attached to bad software..
It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
Rolled this out to a small lab (you know how students are, and where they can go, better safe than...).
After installation, *all* users are asked to individually install another component when the Shock embed in the open page attempts to play (which as non-admins, they can't do). Since several of our teaching programs Shockwave this presents a real PITA.
Previously there was no such behavior. Any ideas?
Oh, so this isn't a story about astronomy... what a relief!
with dupe jokes, and dupe +5 mods.
and finally a dupe commenting on all the dupes from top to bottom.
surely there must be something original....
"You're very clever, young man, very clever", said the old lady. "But it's DUPES all the way down!"
From that article:
(Sometimes you might hear someone refer to "Shockwave Flash", but these are actually two different multimedia players.)
Now go look in the Firefox plugins list (Tools->Add-ons). Yeah... I wonder why people get confused..
Back when there was a serious MS excel bug, there was a State agency website in Iowa(?) that was serving up an infected xls file for some semi-important accounting thing.
One plays back Flash content in the browser, the other plays back Director content in the browser. Adobe bungled the user perception of this continuing in Macromedia's tradition.
- Zav - Imagine a Beowulf cluster of insensitive clods...
I checked my firefox addons list and sure enough, Shockwave was in there. The plugins were Disabled. Well, I might as well get rid of it if I never use it, no? And so the hunt began. I checked my add/remove list. Nope, not there. I tried searching for its files, but still couldn't find it. I googled how to uninstall it, fretted over the invisible and uninstallable evil program with security holes hiding on my computer as I navigated some links, checked the firefox plugin page, and after ten or so minutes I discovered... ... that I don't actually have Shockwave. Just the firefox plugins, which came along for the ride when I copied firefox over from my old computer.
D'oh.
That's actually a smart thing to do: Install Wine, then the Windows version of Firefox and Flash. It is then run from inside you home folder and can't change anything that requires roo-... Ow shit... the home folder :')
Here be signatures
Actually, I think all the 'thanks' is actually owed to Macromedia, who created both formats and steadfastly maintained them as overlapping (and therefore confusing) functionalities, until Adobe stepped in and bought them up.
See?! It's so confusing that I was still confused and didn't know it!
Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
The last Adobe flash update installed McAfee Security Scan without my even noticing. So watch out for those pre-check boxes.
Actually, Macromedia only created Director, back in 1985 (dates taken from Wikipedia timelines). FutureWave Software created Flash (then called FutureSplash) in 1996, eleven years later, as a competitor. Macromedia got scared, so they bought up Flash. But Macromedia definitely made things confusing after they bought it, as you say!
Only a month or so ago, I still had Shockwave 9 installed. I'm sure I'm not alone in saying I have a good number of programs installed on my computer, and keeping track of which ones need updates is a real chore that I usually just (unwisely) ignore. But, then I found this great free program called Secunia PSI. Every week I just click "Scan" and it compares the software installed on my computer, including windows, with an online database, and reports anything that has known security vulnerabilities.