7 Vulnerabilities, Some Are Extremely Severe, Patched In New Opera 9.52
Opera Software has updated its Web browser with fixes for at least seven documented security problems. Details on one more vulnerability, a cross-site scripting issue reported by Chris Weber, currently remains classified.
Opera warned that one of the seven flaws is rated “extremely severe” because of the risk of arbitrary code execution.
Improvements and fixes included in Opera 9.52 are:
1. (extremely severe): When Opera is registered as a handler for a given protocol, it can be started by external applications. In some cases, being started in this way can cause Opera to crash. To inject code, additional techniques will have to be employed. This bug affects Opera for Windows.
2. (highly severe): Scripts are able to change the addresses of framed pages that come from the same site. Due to a flaw in the way that Opera checks what frames can be changed, a site can change the address of frames on other sites inside any window that it has opened. This allows sites to open pages from other sites, and display misleading information on them.
3. (currently a secret): Fixed an issue that could allow cross-site scripting, as reported by Chris Weber of Casaba Security: details will be disclosed at a later date.
4. (moderately severe): Custom shortcut and menu commands can be used to activate external applications. In some cases, the parameters passed to these applications are not prepared correctly, and may be created from uninitialized memory. These may be misinterpreted as additional parameters, and depending on the application, this could allow execution of arbitrary code. Successful exploitation requires convincing the user to modify their shortcuts or menu files appropriately, pointing to an appropriate target application, then to activate that shortcut at an appropriate time. To inject code, additional means will have to be employed. This flaw affects Opera for Microsoft Windows, Linux, FreeBSD and Solaris.
5. (less severe): When insecure pages load content from secure sites into a frame, they can cause Opera to incorrectly report the insecure site as being secure. The padlock icon will incorrectly be shown, and the security information dialog will state that the connection is secure, but without any certificate information.
6. (less severe): As a security precaution, Opera does not allow Web pages to link to files on the user’s local disk. However, a flaw exists that allows Web pages to link to feed source files on the user’s computer. Suitable detection of JavaScript events and appropriate manipulation can unreliably allow a script to detect the difference between successful and unsuccessful subscriptions to these files, to allow it to discover if the file exists or not. In most cases the attempt will fail.
7. (not severe): It has been reported that when a user subscribes to a news feed using the feed subscription button, the page address can be changed. This causes the address field not to update correctly. Although this can mean that that misleading information can be displayed in the address field, it can only leave the attacking page’s address in the address bar, not a trusted third party address.
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August 21st, 2008 at 4:55 am
Since when local exploits get extremely severe rating?
The mixup of frames looks more like something that could be exploited in real-world scenario. Rest of it – not so much.