Vulnerability Note VU#221700

Acer LunchApp ActiveX Control fails to properly restrict access to methods

Original Release date: 12 Jan 2007 | Last revised: 08 May 2007

Overview

The Acer LunchApp ActiveX control contains methods that can allow a remote, unauthenticated attacker to run arbitrary commands on a vulnerable system.

Description

The Acer LunchApp ActiveX control is provided by LunchApp.ocx. It contains a method called Run(), which takes three parameters: Drive, FileName, and CmdLine. Although the control is not inherently marked as safe for scripting via the IObjectSafety interface, it may be distributed with the appropriate Implemented Categories registry key to make it safe for scripting. This means that a web page in Internet Explorer can call the Run() method of the control.

Impact

By convincing a victim to view an HTML document (web page, HTML email, or email attachment), an attacker could run arbitrary commands with the privileges of the user running IE.

Solution

Apply an update

Acer has provided an update called Acer Preload Security Patch for Windows XP. This update unregisters and deletes the LunchApp.ocx file if it is present in the Windows System directory.

This vulnerability is also addressed by Microsoft Security Bulletin MS07-027. This update sets the kill bit for the vulnerable control.


Disable the Acer LunchApp ActiveX control in Internet Explorer

The Acer LunchApp ActiveX control can be disabled in Internet Explorer by setting the kill bit for the following CLSID:

    {D9998BD0-7957-11D2-8FED-00606730D3AA}
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_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ActiveX Compatibility\{D9998BD0-7957-11D2-8FED-00606730D3AA}]
    "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 (Learn More)

VendorStatusDate NotifiedDate Updated
AcerAffected-12 Jan 2007
If you are a vendor and your product is affected, let us know.

CVSS Metrics (Learn More)

Group Score Vector
Base N/A N/A
Temporal N/A N/A
Environmental N/A N/A

References

Credit

This vulnerability was publicly disclosed by Tan Chew Keong.

This document was written by Will Dormann.

Other Information

  • CVE IDs: CVE-2006-6121
  • Date Public: 19 Nov 2006
  • Date First Published: 12 Jan 2007
  • Date Last Updated: 08 May 2007
  • Severity Metric: 12.66
  • Document Revision: 11

Feedback

If you have feedback, comments, or additional information about this vulnerability, please send us email.