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Category — patch update
Update Your Apple Devices to iOS 10.3.1 to Avoid Being Hacked Over Wi-Fi

Update Your Apple Devices to iOS 10.3.1 to Avoid Being Hacked Over Wi-Fi

Apr 04, 2017
Note:  We have published a follow-up article with more technical details about this vulnerability which resides in Broadcom WiFi SoC equipped not only in Apple devices, but also in Android devices from various manufacturers. Less than a week after Apple released iOS 10.3 with over 100 bug fixes and security enhancements; the company has just pushed an emergency patch update – iOS 10.3.1 – to addresses a few critical vulnerabilities, one of which could allow hackers to "execute arbitrary code on the Wi-Fi chip." The vulnerability, identified as CVE-2017-6975, was discovered by Google's Project Zero staffer Gal Beniamini, who noted on Twitter that more information about the flaw would be provided tomorrow. Apple also did not provide any technical details on the flaw, but urged Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch users to update their devices as soon a possible. In the security note accompanying iOS 10.3.1, Apple describes the issue as a stack buffer overflow vuln...
FTC sets $25,000 Prize for Automatic IoT Patch Management Solution

FTC sets $25,000 Prize for Automatic IoT Patch Management Solution

Jan 04, 2017
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has announced a "prize competition" for creating a software or hardware-based solution with the ability to auto-patch vulnerable Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Today we are surrounded by a number of Internet-connected devices. Our homes are filled with tiny computers embedded in everything from security cameras, TVs and refrigerators to thermostat and door locks. While IoT is going to improve life for many, the number of security risks due to lack of stringent security measures and encryption mechanisms in the devices have increased exponentially, giving attackers a large number of entry points to affect you in some or the other way. Remember Mirai Botnet ? A botnet of just 100,000 hijacked IoT devices was used to flood the Dyn DNS service with unwanted requests and close down the Internet for Millions of Users a few months ago. At that time, Chinese firm Hangzhou Xiongmai Technology admitted its smart products – DVRs and ...
Want to Grow Vulnerability Management into Exposure Management? Start Here!

Want to Grow Vulnerability Management into Exposure Management? Start Here!

Dec 05, 2024Attack Surface / Exposure Management
Vulnerability Management (VM) has long been a cornerstone of organizational cybersecurity. Nearly as old as the discipline of cybersecurity itself, it aims to help organizations identify and address potential security issues before they become serious problems. Yet, in recent years, the limitations of this approach have become increasingly evident.  At its core, Vulnerability Management processes remain essential for identifying and addressing weaknesses. But as time marches on and attack avenues evolve, this approach is beginning to show its age. In a recent report, How to Grow Vulnerability Management into Exposure Management (Gartner, How to Grow Vulnerability Management Into Exposure Management, 8 November 2024, Mitchell Schneider Et Al.), we believe Gartner® addresses this point precisely and demonstrates how organizations can – and must – shift from a vulnerability-centric strategy to a broader Exposure Management (EM) framework. We feel it's more than a worthwhile read an...
Critical Updates — RCE Flaws Found in SwiftMailer, PhpMailer and ZendMail

Critical Updates — RCE Flaws Found in SwiftMailer, PhpMailer and ZendMail

Jan 03, 2017
A security researcher recently reported a critical vulnerability in one of the most popular open source PHP libraries used to send emails that allowed a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code in the context of the web server and compromise a web application. Disclosed by Polish security researcher Dawid Golunski of Legal Hackers, the issue ( CVE-2016-10033 ) in PHPMailer used by more than 9 Million users worldwide was thought to be fixed with the release of version 5.2.18. However, Golunski managed to bypass the patched version of PHPMailer that was given a new CVE ( CVE-2016-10045 ), which once again put millions of websites and popular open source web apps, including WordPress, Drupal, 1CRM, SugarCRM, Yii, and Joomla, at risk of remote code execution attack. PHPMailer eventually fixed the issue with an update, version 5.2.20 . All versions of PHPMailer before this critical release are affected, so web administrators and developers are strongly recommended to update to t...
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Google discloses Critical Windows Zero-Day that makes all Windows Users Vulnerable

Google discloses Critical Windows Zero-Day that makes all Windows Users Vulnerable

Nov 01, 2016
Google has once again publicly disclosed a zero-day vulnerability in current versions of Windows operating system before Microsoft has a patch ready. Yes, the critical zero-day is unpatched and is being used by attackers in the wild. Google made the public disclosure of the vulnerability just 10 days after privately reporting the issue to Microsoft, giving the chocolate factory little time to patch issues and deploy a fix. According to a blog post by Google's Threat Analysis Group, the reason behind going public is that it has seen exploits for the vulnerability in the wild and according to its internal policy , companies should patch or publicly report such bugs after seven days. Windows Zero-Day is Actively being Exploited in the Wild The zero-day is a local privilege escalation vulnerability that exists in the Windows operating system kernel. If exploited, the flaw can be used to escape the sandbox protection and execute malicious code on the compromised system. ...
Update your Mac OS X — Apple has released Important Security Updates

Update your Mac OS X — Apple has released Important Security Updates

Sep 02, 2016
If you own a Mac laptop or desktop, you need to update your system right now. It turns out that the critical zero-day security vulnerabilities disclosed last week, which targeted iPhone and iPad users, affect Mac users as well. Late last week, Apple rolled out iOS 9.3.5 update to patch a total of three zero-day vulnerabilities that hackers could have used to remotely gain control of an iPhone by simply making the victim click a link. Dubbed "Trident," the security holes were used to create spyware (surveillance malware) called ' Pegasus ' that was apparently used to target human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor in the United Arab Emirates. Pegasus could allow an attacker to access an incredible amount of data on a target victim, including text messages, calendar entries, emails, WhatsApp messages, user's location, microphone. Pegasus Spyware could even allow an attacker to fully download victim's passwords and steal the stored list of WiFi networks,...
Samsung Get Sued for Failing to Update its Smartphones

Samsung Get Sued for Failing to Update its Smartphones

Jan 22, 2016
One of the world's largest smartphone makers is being sued by the Dutch Consumers' Association (DCA) for its lack in providing timely software updates to its Android smartphones. This doesn't surprise me, though. The majority of manufacturers fail to deliver software updates for old devices for years. However, the consumer protection watchdog in The Netherlands, The Dutch Consumentenbond, filed a lawsuit against Samsung, due to the manufacturer's grip over the local market compared to other manufacturers. Last year, the discovery of the scary Stagefright Security Bug , which affected over 1 Billion Android devices worldwide, forced Samsung to implement a security update process that " fast tracks the security patches over the air when security vulnerabilities are uncovered a security update process that " fast tracks the security patches over the air when security vulnerabilities are uncovered, " and that the security updates will...
Critical OpenSSH Flaw Leaks Private Crypto Keys to Hackers

Critical OpenSSH Flaw Leaks Private Crypto Keys to Hackers

Jan 15, 2016
A 'Serious' security vulnerability has been discovered and fixed in OpenSSH – one of the most widely used open-source implementations of the Secure Shell (SSH) Protocol. The critical vulnerability could be exploited by hackers to force clients to leak their secret private cryptographic keys, potentially exposing users to Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks. What Causes the Flaw to occur? The serious bug was actually the result of a code that enables an experimental " roaming " feature in the OpenSSH versions 5.4 to 7.1 in order to let users resume connections. However, The roaming feature contains two different vulnerabilities: An information sharing flaw ( CVE-2016-0777 ) A less harmless buffer overflow flaw ( CVE-2016-0778 ) The vulnerability does not have any catchy name like some previous OpenSSH flaws. Impact of the Vulnerability This new feature can be exploited by hackers, who could use a malicious OpenSSH server to trick a...
Apple Failed to Patch Rootpipe Mac OS X Yosemite Vulnerability

Apple Failed to Patch Rootpipe Mac OS X Yosemite Vulnerability

Apr 21, 2015
Sad but True! Your Apple's Mac computer is vulnerable to a serious privilege escalation flaw, dubbed "RootPipe," even if you are running the latest version of Mac OS X. What's RootPipe? Back in October 2014, a Swedish White Hat hacker Emil Kvarnhammar claimed to have discovered a critical privilege escalation vulnerability, he dubbed the backdoor as " RootPipe ," in some versions of Mac OS X including the then newest version 10.10 Yosemite. The vulnerability ( CVE-2015-1130 ) could allow an attacker to take full control of your desktop Mac computer or MacBook laptop, even without any authentication. Keeping in mind the devastating effect of the RootPipe vulnerability, the researcher privately reported the flaw to Apple and did not disclose the details of the flaw publicly until the company released a patch to fix it. Apple did release an update but failed to patch RootPipe: Earlier this month, Apple released the latest version of Mac OS...
Microsoft to Issue 16 Security Patches and 60 Other Updates

Microsoft to Issue 16 Security Patches and 60 Other Updates

Nov 10, 2014
Microsoft has this time quite a big pile of security patches in its November 2014 Patch Tuesday , which will address almost 60 non-security updates for its Windows OS along with 16 security updates . The software giant released Advance Notification for 16 security bulletins, the most in more than three years, which will be addressed as of tomorrow, 11 November, 2014. Five of the bulletins have been marked as " critical ", nine are " importan t" in severity, while two were labeled " moderate ." The updates will patch vulnerabilities in Microsoft's various software including Internet Explorer (IE), Windows, Office, Exchange Server, SharePoint Server and the .NET framework as well. Five critical vulnerabilities affect specific versions of Microsoft Windows, including Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows RT, and Windows Server. One of them also affects Internet Explorer versions 7 through 11 as well. Four of the five critical bugs are said to al...
Adobe Releases Critical Security Updates for Acrobat and Reader

Adobe Releases Critical Security Updates for Acrobat and Reader

Sep 18, 2014
After a week delay, Adobe has finally pushed out critical security updates for its frequently-attacked Reader and Acrobat PDF software packages to patch serious vulnerabilities that could lead to computers being compromised. The new versions of Adobe Reader and Acrobat released Tuesday for both Windows and Macintosh computers address eight vulnerabilities, five of which could allow for remote code execution . The remaining three vulnerabilities involve a sandbox bypass vulnerability that can be exploited to escalate an attacker's privileges on Windows, a denial-of-service (DoS) vulnerability related to memory corruption, and a cross-site scripting (XSS) flaw that only affects the programs on the Mac platform. According to Adobe's advisory , applying the patches will involve a system restart. The affected versions are: Adobe Reader XI (11.0.08) and earlier 11.x versions for Windows Adobe Reader XI (11.0.07) and earlier 11.x versions for Macintosh Adobe Reade...
Microsoft Tuesday Update to Patch Critical Windows and Internet Explorer Vulnerabilities

Microsoft Tuesday Update to Patch Critical Windows and Internet Explorer Vulnerabilities

Aug 08, 2014
Today Microsoft has released its Advance Notification for the month of August 2014 Patch Tuesday Updates releasing a total of nine security Bulletins, which will address several vulnerabilities in its products, out of which two are marked critical and rest are important in severity. The latest updates, which is set to arrive on August 12, will address two critical bugs affect Internet Explorer and Windows with seven other issues rated as important. The vulnerabilities in the company's products range from remote code execution to protection bypasses. Both of the critical fixes will address remote-code execution flaws. The critical Windows update affects only business and professional editions of Windows 7 and Windows 8. Whereas, the Internet Explorer update affects all versions of Windows on all supported platforms. The remaining seven updates affect its various products, including Windows, Office, SQL Server, the .NET Framework and SharePoint Server 2013. There wi...
Linux Kernel Vulnerable to Privilege Escalation and DoS Attack

Linux Kernel Vulnerable to Privilege Escalation and DoS Attack

Jun 07, 2014
Multiple flaws have been identified in Linux Kernel and related software could allow hackers to hack your Linux machines, shared hosting and websites hosted on them. PRIVILEGE ESCALATION VULNERABILITY IN LINUX KERNEL A privilege escalation vulnerability has been identified in the widely used Linux kernel that could allow an attackers to take the control of users' system. On Thursday, the most popular distributor of open source Linux OS, Debian warned about this vulnerability (CVE-2014-3153) in a security update, along with some other vulnerabilities in the Linux kernel that may lead to a denial of service attack. The most critical one is the flaw (CVE-2014-3153) discovered by Pinkie Pie which resides in the futex subsystem call of Linux Kernel 2.6.32.62/3.2.59/3.4.91/3.10.41/3.12.21/3.14.5 versions , leaving a queued kernel waiter on the stack, which can be exploited to potentially execute arbitrary code with kernel mode privileges. " Pinkie Pie discovere...
Apple Patches 22 Safari WebKit Vulnerabilities

Apple Patches 22 Safari WebKit Vulnerabilities

May 24, 2014
Apple has just released a pair of software updates for its Safari web browser addressing multiple Webkit vulnerabilities in Mac OS X, providing its users with 21 security patches. The critical bug resides in the Safari 7.0.4 for Mac OS X Mavericks 10.9.3 and Safari 6.1.4 for OS X Lion 10.7.5, OS X Lion Server 10.7.5 and Mountain Lion 10.8.5. According to Apple's security advisory , All of the 21 security flaws address the iOS browser vulnerabilities proliferating through the Safari's open-source Webkit rendering engine. This webkit vulnerability allows a malicious website to execute an arbitrary code on the host computer or unexpected termination of an application in an effort to compromise users' confidential information. " Visiting a maliciously crafted website may lead to an unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution ," Apple warned in the advisory. Security updates tackle a number of flaws including: CVE-2013-2875 CVE-2013-2927 CV...
Update Adobe Reader app for Android to Patch Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Update Adobe Reader app for Android to Patch Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Apr 15, 2014
If you're one of the 400 million Android users out there who have installed Adobe Reader app that helps you to view PDF documents on mobile devices, then you should immediately update your app from Google Play Store. Adobe has released an updated Adobe Reader 11.2.0 version to addresses an important vulnerability that could be exploited to gain 'remote code execution' ability on the affected system. According to the Adobe  advisory , vulnerability ( CVE-2014-0514 ) resides in the implementation of JavaScript APIs on Adobe Reader 11.2 that could be exploited to execute arbitrary code within Adobe Reader. Adobe vulnerability discovered by security researcher  Yorick Koster of Securify BV , claimed that an attacker can create a specially crafted PDF file containing malicious JavaScript code that triggers when the victim will try to open it using affected Adobe Reader for Android Operating System. Multiple attack vectors are available to deploy a malicio...
Apple's iOS vulnerable to Man-in-the-middle Attack, Install iOS 7.0.6 to Patch

Apple's iOS vulnerable to Man-in-the-middle Attack, Install iOS 7.0.6 to Patch

Feb 22, 2014
Apple's latest 35.4 MB update of  iOS 7.0.6  doesn't seem important at first, but it contains a critical security patch that addresses a flaw with SSL encryption. Yes, a very critical security vulnerability that could allow hackers to intercept email and other communications that are meant to be encrypted in iPhone, iPad and Mac computer. Apple provides very little information when disclosing security issues, ' For the protection of our customers, Apple does not disclose, discuss, or confirm security issues until a full investigation has occurred and any necessary patches or releases are available. ' said in the security advisory . Cryptography experts immediately tried to figure out what was wrong with Apple's implementation of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and the details are: Impact:  The vulnerability assigned CVE-2014-1266 and  affects both the iOS and OS X operating systems , describes as ' Secure Transport failed to validate t...
Apple iOS 7.0.4 update released to patch Apple Store purchase vulnerability

Apple iOS 7.0.4 update released to patch Apple Store purchase vulnerability

Nov 16, 2013
Apple has released the latest version of its mobile platform i.e. iOS 7.0.4 includes bug fixes, security patches with some new features. The update is available for iPhone , iPad and iPod touch, identified as " build 11B554a ." Most importantly Apple has patched a critical security flaw that allowed to purchase stuff from the online Apple Store without having to tap in a valid password. Vulnerability assigned as  CVE-2013-5193 , " A signed-in user may be able to complete a transaction without providing a password when prompted. This issue was addressed by additional enforcement of purchase authorization. " Apple's security bulletin says. The patch restores the aforementioned authentication check and will allow app store transactions only  if the user will provide a valid password. The update also addressed an issue that would cause FaceTime calls to fail for some users. Apple recommended users to update their devices immediately. iOS user...
Microsoft Patch Tuesday to fix critical IE8 zero-day flaw

Microsoft Patch Tuesday to fix critical IE8 zero-day flaw

May 12, 2013
This coming Tuesday, Microsoft will issue fixes for 33 vulnerabilities in total, including two critical  zero-day flaws relating to Internet Explorer recently discovered that has been used to attack several high-profile targets. Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are the recipients of a patch that can prevent an exploit that enables remote code execution in the browser. This affects all Windows operating systems except XP. The vulnerability ( CVE-​​2013-​​1347 ) had previously been addressed in a workaround yesterday , but given the way it was being exploited with attacks reported on the US Department of Labor and European aerospace and nuclear researchers the patch has been prioritised. A second bulletin deals with another IE vulnerability believed to be one disclosed in March at the annual Pwn2Own hacking competition. At least four of the patches require a restart, Microsoft said. The remaining eight patches will address flaws that ran...
Microsoft will roll out fix for two critical flaws in Windows and Internet Explorer

Microsoft will roll out fix for two critical flaws in Windows and Internet Explorer

Apr 06, 2013
Microsoft has released an advance notification of 9 security bulletins that it plans to release on April 9, 2013. Microsoft said it will patch nine vulnerabilities in total and two of them rated critical and that of the remaining 7 as Important. The critical vulnerabilities are remote code execution issues. First vulnerability affects Microsoft Windows and Internet Explorer while the second vulnerability affects Microsoft Windows.  The vulnerability will fix a flaw that allows a drive-by attack, which hackers can exploit to attack machines running the software using malware loaded websites. Earlier this year, Microsoft released an emergency update for Internet Explorer after all the commotion about the security holes in Java. The update aimed to patch a security vulnerability in Internet Explorer that is being used for attacks on government contractors and other organisations. The remaining 7 vulnerabilities pertain to issues affecting Microsoft Office, Microsof...
It's Patch Tuesday, Microsoft rolling out Critical security updates

It's Patch Tuesday, Microsoft rolling out Critical security updates

Mar 11, 2013
It's Microsoft Patch Tuesday, and time of the month in which we gather round, hold hands, and see just how much of Microsoft's software needs patching. Prepare your systems, Microsoft is expected to issue seven bulletins affecting all versions of its Windows operating system (OS), some Office components and also Mac OS X, through Silverlight and Office and 4 out of 7 are critical patches. Critical :  The first bulletin will address a remote code execution vulnerability affecting Windows and Internet Explorer. Critical : The second bulletin addresses a remote code execution vulnerability affecting Microsoft Silverlight. Critical :  The third bulletin addresses a remote code execution vulnerability affecting Office. The fourth security bulletin addresses a critical elevation of privilege vulnerability affecting both the Office and Server suites. Important : The fifth and sixth security bulletins address an information disclosure vulnerability affectin...
Oracle Patches Java Zero Day Vulnerability

Oracle Patches Java Zero Day Vulnerability

Jan 16, 2013
Oracle delivered an unusual emergency patch to Java's critical Zero Day vulnerability on Sunday to fix a malicious bug that allowed hackers access to users web browsers. Exploits for the previously undisclosed flaw were being hosted in a number of exploit kits and attacks have already been seen in the wild dropping ransomware and assorted other malware. Security Alert CVE-2013-0422  include two vulnerabilities that are remotely executable. Oracle confirmed that the flaws were only present in Java 7 versions and did not impact Java on servers, Java desktop applications, or embedded Java. Java is used in 3 billion machines, about 2 billion of which are desktop or laptop computers. Similarly, Back in August last year, Oracle issued an urgent fix to seal a dangerous security flaw within its Java software that's left thousands of computers wide open to malicious attacks from hackers. Lamar Bailey , director of security research and development for nCircle ...
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