CVE-2019-1374 in Windows
Summary
by MITRE
An information disclosure vulnerability exists in the way Windows Error Reporting (WER) handles objects in memory, aka 'Windows Error Reporting Information Disclosure Vulnerability'.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/11/2024
The Windows Error Reporting information disclosure vulnerability represents a critical flaw in Microsoft's error handling mechanisms that affects multiple Windows operating systems including Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, and Windows Server 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, and 2016. This vulnerability resides within the Windows Error Reporting component which is responsible for collecting and transmitting crash information to Microsoft for diagnostic purposes. The flaw manifests when WER processes memory objects during error reporting scenarios, creating opportunities for unauthorized information disclosure. According to CWE-200, this vulnerability falls under information exposure, where sensitive data that should remain private becomes accessible to malicious actors. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it operates at the system level where WER has elevated privileges and access to various memory segments that contain potentially sensitive information.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when Windows Error Reporting encounters a crash or error condition and attempts to process memory objects for diagnostic purposes. The flaw specifically involves improper handling of memory references and object structures within WER's memory management routines. Attackers can potentially trigger this vulnerability by crafting specific error conditions or by manipulating applications that may crash in ways that cause WER to access improperly managed memory segments. The memory corruption or improper object handling creates information leakage that could expose sensitive data including user credentials, application data, system configuration details, or other confidential information stored in memory at the time of the error condition. This vulnerability is categorized under ATT&CK technique T1005 as it involves data from local system sources and represents a form of information gathering that could be leveraged for further attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure to potentially enable more sophisticated attacks. When an attacker successfully exploits this vulnerability, they can gain access to memory contents that may include unencrypted passwords, session tokens, cryptographic keys, or other sensitive data that applications or system processes have stored in memory. The vulnerability's presence in Windows Error Reporting means that any application crash or system error could potentially serve as an attack vector for information extraction. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where applications may handle sensitive data and where system crashes could be induced through various attack vectors. The impact is amplified because WER operates with elevated privileges and has broad memory access capabilities, making it an attractive target for attackers seeking to extract system information without requiring direct user interaction or elevated privileges through traditional attack vectors.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on both immediate patching and defensive measures. Microsoft released security updates in September 2019 that addressed this vulnerability through improved memory handling in the Windows Error Reporting component. Organizations should prioritize deployment of these patches across all affected systems to eliminate the risk of exploitation. Additionally, implementing network monitoring to detect unusual WER activity or memory access patterns can provide early warning of potential exploitation attempts. System hardening measures including disabling unnecessary error reporting functionality where possible, implementing strict memory protection mechanisms, and using application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized applications from triggering error conditions that could exploit this vulnerability are recommended. Security teams should also consider implementing memory integrity checks and monitoring for abnormal memory access patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability's classification as a memory management issue makes it particularly important to ensure that all system components properly validate memory access and handle object references to prevent similar issues from arising in other system components.