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                       The U.S. Department of Energy
                   Computer Incident Advisory Capability
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                             INFORMATION BULLETIN

                Unchecked Buffer in MDAC Function Vulnerability
                     [Microsoft Security Bulletin MS02-040]

August 1, 2002 17:00 GMT                                          Number M-105
[Revised 21 Aug 2003]
______________________________________________________________________________
PROBLEM:       A vulnerability has been identified in the Microsoft Data 
               Access Components (MDAC). The MDAC functions underlying 
               OpenRowSet contain an unchecked buffer. 
PLATFORM:      Microsoft® SQL Server™ 7.0 or 2000 
AFFECTED VERSIONS:
               Microsoft Data Access Components 2.5 
               Microsoft Data Access Components 2.6 
               Microsoft Data Access Components 2.7 
DAMAGE:        An overrun of the buffer could occur if an attacker submitted a 
               database query containing a specially malformed parameter 
               within a call to OpenRowSet resulting in the ability to run code
               of attacker's choice.
SOLUTION:      Apply available patches. 
______________________________________________________________________________
VULNERABILITY  The risk is MEDIUM. Even though MDAC ships as part of all 
ASSESSMENT:    versions of Windows, the vulnerability can only be exploited on 
               SQL Servers. Customers who are not using SQL Server do not need 
               to take action, despite the fact that MDAC may be installed on 
               their systems. 
______________________________________________________________________________
LINKS: 
 CIAC BULLETIN:      http://www.ciac.org/ciac/bulletins/m-105.shtml 
 ORIGINAL BULLETIN:                                                           
                     
                     http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/
                             default.asp?url=/technet/security/bulletin/MS02-040.asp
 PATCHES:            MDAC 2.5: 
                     http://www.microsoft.com/Downloads/Release.asp?ReleaseID=41076 
                     MDAC 2.6: 
                     http://www.microsoft.com/Downloads/Release.asp?ReleaseID=41077 
                     MDAC 2.7: 
                     http://www.microsoft.com/Downloads/Release.asp?ReleaseID=41072 
______________________________________________________________________________

Revision History: 8/21/03 - Updated to reflect bulletin affects all versions of
                            Windows and not just Microsoft SQL Server.

[***** Start Microsoft Security Bulletin MS02-040 *****]

Microsoft Security Bulletin MS02-040

Unchecked Buffer in MDAC Function Could Enable System 
Compromise (Q326573)
Originally posted: July 31, 2002 
Updated: August 20, 2003

Summary
Who should read this bulletin: Customers using Microsoft® 
Windows®. 

Impact of vulnerability: Run code of the attacker’s choice. 

Maximum Severity Rating: Critical 

Recommendation: Users should install the security patch 
immediately. 

Affected Software: 

* Microsoft Data Access Components 2.5 
* Microsoft Data Access Components 2.6 
* Microsoft Data Access Components 2.7 

Technical details

Technical description: 

Subsequent to the release of this bulletin, it was determined that 
the vulnerability addressed is not with the OpenRowSet command 
(which is a Microsoft SQL Server command) but rather that the 
vulnerability is with the underlying MDAC component Open Database 
Connectivity (ODBC), which is present in all versions of Windows. 
Additionally, the original patch released with this did not install 
correctly on some systems because of a flaw in the way that Microsoft 
Windows Installer updated the System File Protection cache. The 
bulletin has been updated to include this additional information and 
to direct users to an updated patch. 

Note: The patch for this security bulletin has been superceded by the 
patch in MS03-033. Customers who are seeking the patch for MS02-040 
should instead install the patch for MS03-033. 

MDAC is a collection of components that are used to provide database 
connectivity on Windows platforms. MDAC is a ubiquitous technology, and 
it is likely to be present on most Windows systems: 

* By default, MDAC is included as part of Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 
  2000, and Windows Millennium Edition. 

* MDAC is available for download as a stand-alone technology. 

* MDAC is either included in or installed by a number of other products 
  and technologies. For example, MDAC is included in the Microsoft Windows 
  NT® 4.0 Option Pack, as part of Microsoft Access, and as part of SQL 
  Server. Some MDAC components are also present as part of Microsoft Internet 
  Explorer even if MDAC itself is not installed. 

MDAC provides the underlying functionality for a number of database operations, 
such as connecting to remote databases and returning data to a client. 
Specifically, it is the MDAC component known as Open Database Connectivity 
(ODBC) that provides this functionality. 

A security vulnerability results because one of the ODBC functions in MDAC that 
is used to connect to data sources contains an unchecked buffer. An attacker 
could seek to exploit the vulnerability by constructing a Web page that, when 
visited by the user, could execute code of the attacker's choice with the 
user's privileges. The Web page could be hosted on a Web site or sent directly 
to the user in an e-mail message. 

In the case of a system that is running SQL Server, an attacker could seek to 
exploit this vulnerability by using the Transact-SQL OpenRowSet command. An 
attacker who submits a database query that contains a specially-malformed 
parameter within a call to OpenRowSet could overrun the buffer, either to 
cause the computer that is running SQL Server to fail or to cause the 
computer that is running SQL Server to take actions that are dictated by 
the attacker. 

Mitigating factors: 

* Users who read e-mail messages as plain text would have to take an action 
  before an attacker could exploit the vulnerability to be exploited. 

* Systems that are configured to disable active scripting in Internet Explorer 
  are not affected by this vulnerability. 

* In the Web-based attack scenario, a user would need to visit a malicious web 
  site under the control of an attacker. An attacker would have no way to force 
  users to visit a malicious Web site outside the HTML e-mail vector. Instead, 
  an attacker would need to lure them there, typically by getting the user to 
  click a link that took them to the attacker's site. 

* The privileges that are gained through a successful attack would be equal to 
  those of the application under which ODBC is running. In most cases, an 
  attacker would gain only the same level of privileges as the logged on user. 

* By default, Outlook Express 6.0 and Outlook 2002 open HTML mail in the 
  Restricted Sites Zone. In addition, Outlook 98 and 2000 open HTML mail in the 
  Restricted Sites Zone if the Outlook Email Security Update has been installed. 
  Customers who use any of these products would be at no risk from an e-mail borne 
  attack that attempted to exploit this vulnerability unless the user clicked a 
  malicious link in the email. 

Severity Rating: 

MDAC 2.5 	Critical 
MDAC 2.6 	Critical 
MDAC 2.7 	Critical 

The above assessment is based on the types of systems that are affected by the 
vulnerability, their typical deployment patterns, and the effect that exploiting 
the vulnerability would have on them. 

Vulnerability identifier: CVE-CAN-2002-0695 

Tested Versions: 

Microsoft tested MDAC 2.5, 2.6, and 2.7 to assess whether they are affected by 
these vulnerabilities. Previous versions are no longer supported and may or may 
not be affected by these vulnerabilities. 

Patch availability

Download locations for this patch 
This patch has been superceded by the patch in MS03-033. Users should apply 
MS03-033, which also contains a fix for an additional security vulnerability. 
Please refer to the "Patch Availability" section of MS03-033 for the download 
location of that patch. 

Additional information about this patch

Installation platforms: 

Please refer to the "Additional Information" section of MS03-033 for installation 
platform information for this patch. 

Inclusion in future service packs: 

The fix for this issue will be included in MDAC 2.5 Service Pack 5 and in MDAC 2.7 
Service Pack 2. The fix is included in MDAC 2.8. 

Reboot needed: Yes 

Patch can be uninstalled: No 

Superseded patches: None 

Verifying patch installation:

Microsoft Knowledge Base article 326573 provides a file manifest that can be used 
to verify the patch installation.

Caveats:

This patch is superseded by the security patch for MS03-033. Users should apply the 
patch that is included in MS03-033.

Localization:

Localized versions of this patch are available at the locations that are discussed 
in the "Patch Availability" section of this bulletin.

Obtaining other security patches: 
Patches for other security issues are available from the following locations: 

* Security patches are available from the Microsoft Download Center, and can be most 
  easily found by doing a keyword search for "security_patch". 

* Patches for consumer platforms are available from the WindowsUpdate web site 

Other information: 

Acknowledgments
Microsoft thanks David Litchfield of Next Generation Security Software Ltd. for 
reporting this issue to us and working with us to protect customers. 

Support: 

* Microsoft Knowledge Base article 326573 discusses this issue and will be available 
  approximately 24 hours after the release of this bulletin. Knowledge Base articles 
  can be found on the Microsoft Online Support web site. 

* Technical support is available from Microsoft Product Support Services. There is no 
  charge for support calls associated with security patches. 

Security Resources: The Microsoft TechNet Security Web Site provides additional 
information about security in Microsoft products. 

Disclaimer: 
The information provided in the Microsoft Knowledge Base is provided "as is" without 
warranty of any kind. Microsoft disclaims all warranties, either express or implied, 
including the warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In 
no event shall Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers be liable for any damages 
whatsoever including direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, loss of business 
profits or special damages, even if Microsoft Corporation or its suppliers have been 
advised of the possibility of such damages. Some states do not allow the exclusion 
or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages so the foregoing 
limitation may not apply. 

Revisions: 

* V1.0 (July 31, 2002): Bulletin Created. 
* V2.0 (August 20, 2003): Updated to reflect bulletin affects all versions of Windows 
  and not just Microsoft SQL Server. 

[***** End Microsoft Security Bulletin MS02-040 *****]

_______________________________________________________________________________

CIAC wishes to acknowledge the contributions of Microsoft for the 
information contained in this bulletin.
_______________________________________________________________________________


CIAC, the Computer Incident Advisory Capability, is the computer
security incident response team for the U.S. Department of Energy
(DOE) and the emergency backup response team for the National
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