Launch Printer Friendly Page Security TechCenter > Security Bulletins > Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-060

Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-060 - Critical

Vulnerabilities in Microsoft Active Template Library (ATL) ActiveX Controls for Microsoft Office Could Allow Remote Code Execution (973965)

Published: | Updated:

Version: 1.5

General Information

Executive Summary

This security update resolves several privately reported vulnerabilities in ActiveX Controls for Microsoft Office that were compiled with a vulnerable version of Microsoft Active Template Library (ATL). The vulnerabilities could allow remote code execution if a user loaded a specially crafted component or control. 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.

This security update is rated Critical for all supported editions of Microsoft Outlook 2002, Microsoft Office Outlook 2003, Microsoft Office Outlook 2007, Microsoft Visio 2002 Viewer, Microsoft Office Visio 2003 Viewer, and Microsoft Office Visio Viewer 2007. For more information on the software affected by this update, see the subsection, Affected and Non-Affected Software, in this section.

The security update addresses the vulnerabilities by correcting the manner in which ATL handles the instantiation of objects from data streams, providing updated versions of the affected components and controls built using corrected ATL headers. For more information about the vulnerability, see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) subsection for the specific vulnerability entry under the next section, Vulnerability Information.

Recommendation. Microsoft recommends that customers apply the update immediately.

Known Issues. Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 973965 documents the currently known issues that customers may experience when installing this security update. The article also documents recommended solutions for these issues. When currently known issues and recommended solutions pertain only to specific releases of this software, this article provides links to further articles.

Affected and Non-Affected Software

The following software have been tested to determine which versions or editions are affected. Other versions or editions are either past their support life cycle or are not affected. To determine the support life cycle for your software version or edition, visit Microsoft Support Lifecycle.

Affected Software

Office Suite and Other SoftwareComponentMaximum Security ImpactAggregate Severity RatingBulletins Replaced by this Update
Microsoft Office XP Service Pack 3Microsoft Outlook 2002 Service Pack 3
(KB973702)
Remote Code ExecutionCriticalMS08-015
Microsoft Office 2003 Service Pack 3Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 Service Pack 3
(KB973705)
Remote Code ExecutionCriticalMS08-015
2007 Microsoft Office System Service Pack 1 and 2007 Microsoft Office System Service Pack 2Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 Service Pack 1 and Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 Service Pack 2
(KB972363)
Remote Code ExecutionCriticalNone
Other Office Software
Microsoft Visio 2002 Viewer*Not applicableRemote Code ExecutionCriticalNone
Microsoft Office Visio 2003 Viewer*Not applicableRemote Code ExecutionCriticalNone
Microsoft Office Visio Viewer 2007 Service Pack 1 and Microsoft Office Visio Viewer 2007 Service Pack 2
(KB973709)
Not applicableRemote Code ExecutionCriticalNone

*Microsoft recommends that users of Microsoft Visio Viewer 2002 and Microsoft Visio Viewer 2003 upgrade to Microsoft Office Visio Viewer 2007 Service Pack 2.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Related to This Security Update

Vulnerability Information

Severity Ratings and Vulnerability Identifiers

ATL Uninitialized Object Vulnerability - CVE-2009-0901

ATL COM Initialization Vulnerability - CVE-2009-2493

ATL Null String Vulnerability - CVE-2009-2495

Update Information

Detection and Deployment Tools and Guidance

Security Update Deployment

Other Information

Acknowledgments

Microsoft thanks the following for working with us to help protect customers:

  • David Dewey of IBM ISS X-Force for reporting the ATL Uninitialized Object Vulnerability (CVE-2009-0901)
  • Ryan Smith of VeriSign iDefense Labs for reporting the ATL COM Initialization Vulnerability (CVE-2009-2493)
  • Ryan Smith of VeriSign iDefense Labs for reporting the ATL Null String Vulnerability (CVE-2009-2495)

Microsoft Active Protections Program (MAPP)

To improve security protections for customers, Microsoft provides vulnerability information to major security software providers in advance of each monthly security update release. Security software providers can then use this vulnerability information to provide updated protections to customers via their security software or devices, such as antivirus, network-based intrusion detection systems, or host-based intrusion prevention systems. To determine whether active protections are available from security software providers, please visit the active protections Web sites provided by program partners, listed in Microsoft Active Protections Program (MAPP) Partners.

Support

  • Customers in the U.S. and Canada can receive technical support from Security Support or 1-866-PCSAFETY. There is no charge for support calls that are associated with security updates. For more information about available support options, see Microsoft Help and Support.
  • International customers can receive support from their local Microsoft subsidiaries. There is no charge for support that is associated with security updates. For more information about how to contact Microsoft for support issues, visit the International Support Web site.

Disclaimer

The information provided in the Microsoft Knowledge Base is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Microsoft disclaims all warranties, either express or implied, including the warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers be liable for any damages whatsoever including direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, loss of business profits or special damages, even if Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages so the foregoing limitation may not apply.

Revisions

  • V1.0 (October 13, 2009): Bulletin published.
  • V1.1 (October 21, 2009): Added entries to the section, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Related to This Security Update, to describe the known issue update available from KB974554, KB974556, or KB974234.
  • V1.2 (November 4, 2009): Removed erroneous references to the original release version of Microsoft Office Visio Viewer 2007 as affected software.
  • V1.3 (January 12, 2010): Revised this bulletin to announce a detection logic change to fix the issue where the June 9, 2009 update for Outlook 2007 (KB969907) was incorrectly being offered in addition to the update package for Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 (KB972363). This is a deployment change only that does not affect the files contained in the initial update. Customers who have successfully updated their systems do not need to reinstall this update.
  • V1.4 (February 9, 2010): Revised this bulletin to announce a detection logic change to fix the issue where the July 8, 2008 update for Outlook 2003 (KB953432) was incorrectly being offered in addition to the update package for Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 (KB973705). This is a deployment change only that does not affect the files contained in the initial update. Customers who have successfully updated their systems do not need to reinstall this update.
  • V1.5 (February 17, 2010): Corrected the MBSA detection entries for Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 and Microsoft Office Visio Viewer 2007. This is an information change only. There were no changes to the security update files or detection logic.