Vulnerability Note VU#908801

Particle Software IntraLaunch Application Launcher ActiveX control fails to restrict access to dangerous methods

Overview

The Particle Software IntraLaunch Application Launcher ActiveX control allows arbitrary code execution.

I. Description

Particle Software IntraLaunch is an ActiveX control that "... allows web page links to execute anything from applications to associations such as Word or Acrobat PDF documents both locally and across a network without prompts or security warnings." The IntraLaunch ActiveX control, which is provided by IntraLaunch.ocx, is marked Safe for Scripting and by default is not restricted to any specific domain or Internet Explorer zone. This means that any web site has the ability to run arbitrary code on a system that has the control.

Note that a vendor may purchase a site-locked version of the IntraLaunch control, but by default the control is not restricted.

II. Impact

By convincing a user to view a specially crafted HTML document (e.g., a web page or an HTML email message or attachment), an attacker may be able to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the user.

III. Solution

We are currently unaware of a practical solution to this problem. Please consider the following workarounds:

Disable the IntraLaunch ActiveX control in Internet Explorer

The vulnerable ActiveX control can be disabled in Internet Explorer by setting the kill bit for the following CLSIDs:

{0AE533FE-B805-4FD6-8AE1-A619FBEE7A23}
{58FEBB79-70F5-48A6-9697-E91591DA3F8E}
{858B4F85-E945-4F0C-AF65-059E0AD9EEC0}

More information about how to set the kill bit is available in Microsoft Support Document 240797. Alternatively, the following text can be saved as a .REG file and imported to set the kill bit for this control:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftInternet ExplorerActiveX Compatibility{0AE533FE-B805-4FD6-8AE1-A619FBEE7A23}]
"Compatibility Flags"=dword:00000400

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftInternet ExplorerActiveX Compatibility{58FEBB79-70F5-48A6-9697-E91591DA3F8E}]
"Compatibility Flags"=dword:00000400

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftInternet ExplorerActiveX Compatibility{858B4F85-E945-4F0C-AF65-059E0AD9EEC0}]
"Compatibility Flags"=dword:00000400

Disable ActiveX

Disabling ActiveX controls in the Internet Zone (or any zone used by an attacker) appears to prevent exploitation of this and other ActiveX vulnerabilities. Instructions for disabling ActiveX in the Internet Zone can be found in the "Securing Your Web Browser" document.

Systems Affected

Vendor	Status	Date Notified	Date Updated
LDRA Software Technology	Vulnerable	2009-03-09	2009-04-06
Particle Software	Vulnerable	2009-02-13	2009-04-06

References

http://www.cert.org/tech_tips/securing_browser/
http://www.particlesoftware.com/en/index.html
http://www.particlesoftware.com/en/security.html
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/240797

Credit

This vulnerability was reported by Will Dormann of the CERT/CC.

This document was written by Will Dormann.

Other Information

Date Public:	97-06-07
Date First Published:	2009-04-06
Date Last Updated:	2009-04-15
CERT Advisory:
CVE-ID(s):	CVE-2009-0218
NVD-ID(s):	CVE-2009-0218
US-CERT Technical Alerts:
Metric:	9.62
Document Revision:	15