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Update Protection against Symantec Antivirus Intel Alert Handler Service Denial of Service Vulnerability

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Check Point Reference: CPAI-2011-019
Date Published:
Severity:
Last Updated:
Source: Secunia Advisory: SA43099
Industry Reference(s): CVE-2010-0111
CVE-2011-1206
Protection Provided by: Security Gateway
  • R75
IPS-1
  • IPS-1
  • IPS-1 NGX R65
Who is Vulnerable?
Symantec Antivirus Corporate Edition 10.1.8.8000 and prior
Symantec System Center 10.1.8.8000 and prior
Symantec Client Security 3.1.8 and prior
Vulnerability Description
A denial of service vulnerability has been reported in Symantec's Antivirus Intel Alert Handler service. The Symantec System Center includes an optional component called the Alert Management System (AMS2). The AMS2 starts multiple services on the system that include an alert handler service from Intel Corporation called the AMS2 Handler Manager Service (HNDLRSVC.EXE). A remote attacker may exploit this vulnerability to create a denial of service condition on an affected system.
Vulnerability Details
The vulnerability is due to an input validation error in the Symantec's Antivirus Intel Alert Handler service when handling the arguments passed in AMS messages sent to the affected service. A remote attacker may exploit this issue by sending a crafted packet, containing a malicious size value, to the target service. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability would result in termination of the affected service, causing a denial of service condition.

Protection Overview
This protection detects and blocks crafted packets containing a malicious size value sent to the affected service. 

In order for the protection to be activated, update your Security Gateway product to the latest IPS update. For information on how to update IPS, go to SBP-2006-05, Protection taband select the version of your choice.

To configure the defense, select your product from the list below and follow the related protection steps.

Security Gateway: R75

How Can I Protect My Network?
1. In the IPS tab, click Protections > By Protocol > Application Intelligence > Security Products.
2. In the right pane, double-click the Symantec Antivirus Intel Alert Handler Service Denial of Service protection.
3. In the Protection Details window, click on Edit. Choose the protection's Action (Override IPS Policy with: Prevent/Detect), and apply Additional Settings. 
4. Install policy on all modules.

How Do I Know if My Network is Under Attack?
SmartView Tracker will log the following entries:

Attack Name: Security Products Enforcement Violation
Attack Information: Symantec Antivirus Intel alert handler service denial of service

IPS-1 & IPS-1 NGX R65

How Can I Protect My Network?
1. In the IPS-1 Policy Manager, click on the Protection tab.
2. In the Protection tree, click Application Intelligence > Enterprise Software, and select the Symantec Alert Management System protection group.
3. Click Symantec Alert Management System Intel Alert Originator Service protocol compliance (IPS-1 NGX R65 only).
4. In the configuration pane, under Settings, check Active.
5. Click on Install Policy.

How Do I Know if My Network is Under Attack?
Upon attack, the following entries will be logged:

Alert Name: Symantec Alert Management System
Description: Symantec Alert Management System Intel Alert Originator Service protocol compliance