BlackBerry security hole patched

By

A security hole in the Windows software used to download files to BlackBerry phones has been plugged.

A security hole in the Windows software used to download files to BlackBerry phones has been plugged.

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) on Wednesday addressed a vulnerability in its BlackBerry Application Web Loader, an ActiveX control that is typically started on a web page and downloads software through a USB cable connected to the phone.

RIM issued an advisory that said: “When a BlackBerry device user browses to a website that is designed to install the BlackBerry Application Web Loader ActiveX control on BlackBerry devices over a USB connection, and clicks ‘Yes' to install and run the ActiveX control, the ActiveX control introduces the vulnerability [a buffer overflow] to the computer.”

The RIM advisory said that the vulnerability has a Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) score of 9.3. CVSS scores range from 0 (no vulnerability) to 10 (critical).

“By convincing a user to view a specially crafted HTML document, an attacker may be able to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the user," a US-CERT alert warned. "The attacker could also cause Internet Explorer to crash."

For its part, Microsoft addressed the problem in a revised patch released Tuesday, saying in an advisory that one of its latest security updates sets a kill bit for an ActiveX control developed by RIM. A kill bit stops an ActiveX control from running in Internet Explorer.

See original article on scmagazineus.com


Got a news tip for our journalists? Share it with us anonymously here.
Copyright © SC Magazine, US edition
Tags:

Most Read Articles

India's alarm over Chinese spying rocks CCTV makers

India's alarm over Chinese spying rocks CCTV makers

Hackers abuse modified Salesforce app to steal data, extort companies

Hackers abuse modified Salesforce app to steal data, extort companies

Woolworths' CSO is Optus-bound

Woolworths' CSO is Optus-bound

Cyber companies hope to untangle weird hacker codenames

Cyber companies hope to untangle weird hacker codenames

Log In

  |  Forgot your password?