News
Critical Patch Released for Windows Me
- By Scott Bekker
- February 26, 2003
Microsoft issued a critical security patch for the Windows Me on Wednesday. The flaw in the Windows Me Help and Support Center could enable code execution.
Although the client operating system was wholly intended for consumer use, many corporate IT departments have found themselves supporting Windows Me in some capacity. A recent ENT reader survey revealed that 13 percent of respondents had to support Windows Me in their environments.
The Windows Me Help and Support Center gives users a central way to access product documentation, hardware compatibility information, Windows Update and online help from Microsoft. But an unchecked buffer in the way Windows Me handles the "hcp://" prefix in a URL link that points to the Help and Support Center creates the vulnerability.
To exploit the flaw, an attacker would have to cause a user to visit a Web page or receive an HTML e-mail containing the malformed URL.
The Microsoft security bulletin and patch may be found at: www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS03-006.asp.
About the Author
Scott Bekker is editor in chief of Redmond Channel Partner magazine.