Microsoft Visual Studio up to 2019 Version 16.7 code injection

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability classified as critical has been found in Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 Update 5/2013 Update 5/2015 Update 3/2017 Version 15.9/2019 Version 16.7. The affected element is an unknown function. The manipulation leads to code injection. This vulnerability is traded as CVE-2020-16874. It is possible to initiate the attack remotely. There is no exploit available. To fix this issue, it is recommended to deploy a patch.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as critical, has been found in Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 Update 5/2013 Update 5/2015 Update 3/2017 Version 15.9/2019 Version 16.7 (Programming Tool Software). This issue affects some unknown processing. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a code injection vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-94. The product constructs all or part of a code segment using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the syntax or behavior of the intended code segment. Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

<p>A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio when it improperly handles objects in memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the context of the current user. If the current user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker could take control of the affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. 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.</p> <p>To exploit the vulnerability, an attacker would have to convince a user to open a specially crafted file with an affected version of Visual Studio.</p> <p>The update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how Visual Studio handles objects in memory.</p>

The weakness was shared 09/08/2020 as confirmed security update guide (Website). It is possible to read the advisory at portal.msrc.microsoft.com. The vendor cooperated in the coordination of the public release. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2020-16874. The attack may be initiated remotely. No form of authentication is needed for a successful exploitation. It demands that the victim is doing some kind of user interaction. The technical details are unknown and an exploit is not publicly available. The attack technique deployed by this issue is T1059 according to MITRE ATT&CK. The advisory points out:

A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Visual Studio when it improperly handles objects in memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could run arbitrary code in the context of the current user. If the current user is logged on with administrative user rights, an attacker could take control of the affected system. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. 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.

Applying a patch is able to eliminate this problem. A possible mitigation has been published immediately after the disclosure of the vulnerability.

Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

• Programming Tool Software

Vendor

• Microsoft

Name

• Visual Studio

Version

• 2012 Update 5
• 2013 Update 5
• 2015 Update 3
• 2017 Version 15.9
• 2019 Version 16.7

License

• commercial

Website

• Vendor: https://www.microsoft.com/

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