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Update Protection against Microsoft Excel Rich Text Parsing Zero-Day Remote Code Execution Vulnerability (MS09-009)

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Check Point Reference: CPAI-2009-028
Date Published:
Severity:
Last Updated:
Source: Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-009
Industry Reference(s): CVE-2009-0238
Protection Provided by: Security Gateway
  • R70
VPN-1
  • NGX R65
  • NGX R62
  • NGX R61
  • NGX R60
VSX
  • NGX R65
Who is Vulnerable?
Microsoft Office Excel 2000 SP3
Microsoft Office Excel 2002 SP3
Microsoft Office Excel 2003 SP3
Microsoft Office Excel 2007 SP1
Microsoft Office Excel Viewer 2003
Microsoft Office Excel Viewer 2003 SP3
Microsoft Office Excel Viewer
Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats SP1
Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac
Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac
Vulnerability Description
A remote code execution vulnerability has been identified in Microsoft Excel. Microsoft Excel is a popular spreadsheet application. A remote attacker could exploit this issue via a malformed Excel file. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may allow execution of arbitrary code on a target system.
Update/Patch Available
Apply patches:
Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-009
Vulnerability Details
The vulnerability is caused when a specially crafted Excel file attempts to access an invalid object. An attacker can exploit this flaw to execute arbitrary code on a vulnerable system via a malicious Excel file.

Protection Overview
This protection will detect and block the transferring of malformed Excel files over HTTP.  In order for the defense to provide protection against the new zero-day attack vector, apply the latest IPS/SmartDefense update.

In order for the protection to be activated, update your Security Gateway/VPN-1 product to the latest IPS/SmartDefense update. For information on how to update IPS/SmartDefense, go to SBP-2006-05, Protection tab and 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 R70

How Can I Protect My Network?
1. In the IPS tab, click Protections > By Protocol > Application Intelligence > Content Protection.
2. In the right pane, double-click the Microsoft Excel Rich Text Handling Code Execution (MS08-014) 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: Content Protection Violation
Attack Information: Microsoft Excel rich text parsing code execution (MS09-009)

VPN-1 NGX R65 & R62

How Can I Protect My Network?
1. In the SmartDefense tab, click Application Intelligence > Content Protection > Block Microsoft Excel Rich Text Validation Vulnerability (MS08-014).
2. In the configuration pane, under Settings > Mode, check Active.
3. Install policy on all modules.

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

Attack Name: Content Protection Violation
Attack Information: Microsoft Excel rich text parsing code execution (MS09-009)

VPN-1 NGX R61 & R60

How Can I Protect My Network?
1. In the SmartDefense tree, click Application Intelligence > Content Protection.
2. Select the following:

Block Microsoft Excel Rich Text Validation Vulnerability (MS08-014)

3. Install policy on all modules.

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

Attack Name: Content Protection Violation
Attack Information: Microsoft Excel rich text parsing code execution (MS09-009)

VPN-1 VSX NGX R65

How Can I Protect My Network?
1. In the SmartDefense tab, click Application Intelligence > Content Protection > Block Microsoft Excel Rich Text Validation Vulnerability (MS08-014).
2. In the configuration pane, under Settings > Mode, check Active.
3. Install policy on all modules.

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

Attack Name: Content Protection Violation
Attack Information: Microsoft Excel rich text parsing code execution (MS09-009)