AOL YGPPDownload SetAlbumName ActiveX Control Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

iDefense Security Advisory 10.11.06
http://www.idefense.com/intelligence/vulnerabilities/
Oct 11, 2006

I. BACKGROUND

America Online 9.0 Security Edition builds upon Internet Explorer
technology to offer its users enhanced security and usability features.
More information can be found on the vendors site at the following URL:

  http://www.corp.aol.com/products/brands_aol2.shtml

II. DESCRIPTION

America Online 9.0 Security Edition ships with an ActiveX control which
is marked as safe for scripting and contains a buffer overflow
vulnerability which allows for the arbitrary execution of code.

When AOL 9.0 is installed, it registers the following ActiveX control on
the system:

ProgId: AOL.PicDownloadCtrl.1
ClassId: D670D0B3-05AB-4115-9F87-D983EF1AC747
File: YGPPicDownload.dll

This control is registered as safe for scripting in IE and contains a
buffer overflow in its SetAlbumName() method.

III. ANALYSIS

Exploitation of this vulnerability is trivial and allows for arbitrary
execution of code as the currently logged in user. Users would need to
be convinced to go to a malicious web site in order to be exploited.

IV. DETECTION

This vulnerability has been verified in AOL Security Edition 9.0 with
downloader plug-in version 9.2.3.0.

V. WORKAROUND

Disabling Active Scripting or unregistering the vulnerable control can
prevent exploitation.  Additionally, setting the kill bit for the
vulnerable control will disable it from running within Internet
Explorer.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

"All AOL software versions are affected by this issue.

Solutions

1. Users of AOL 9.0 or AOL 9.0 Security Edition are recommended to log
in to the AOL service and a fix will be seamlessly applied to their
system.

2. Users using versions of AOL that are older than 9.0 are strongly
recommended to upgrade to the latest version of AOL 9.0 Security
Edition."

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CVE-2006-4840 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

09/11/2006  Initial vendor notification
09/11/2006  Initial vendor response
10/11/2006  Coordinated public disclosure

IX. CREDIT

The discoverer of this vulnerability wishes to remain anonymous.

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X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright © 2006 iDefense, Inc.

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Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect,
or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on,
this information.