FortiGuard Advisory (FGA-2009-04)

Fortinet discovers multiple vulnerabilities in RealNetworks' RealPlayer
2009.February.05

Summary:

Fortinet's FortiGuard Global Security Research Team has discovered two vulnerabilities in RealPlayer, which allow a remote attacker to compromise a system through a malicious media clip.

Impact:

Remote code execution.

Risk:
  • Critical

Affected Software:
  • RealNetworks RealPlayer 11

Additional Information:

Internet Video Recording (IVR) files contain media content that is played and recorded by RealPlayer. A remote attacker could craft a malicious IVR file, that when sent to an unsuspecting user, may allow the execution of arbitrary code when viewed, using one of two vulnerabilities during RealPlayer's IVR processing routine:
  • A heap corruption vulnerability that occurs when altering a field that determines the length of a structure
  • A vulnerability that allows an attacker to write one null byte to an arbitrary memory address by using an overly long file name length value
It should be noted that the victim does not necessarily have to open the malicious file for exploitation to occur: the vulnerabilities lie in a DLL that is also used as a plugin for the Windows Explorer shell. A successful attack could take place by merely previewing the IVR file through Windows Explorer.

Solutions:

Fortinet customers who subscribe to Fortinet’s intrusion prevention (IPS) service should be protected against these two vulnerabilities. Fortinet’s IPS service is one component of FortiGuard Subscription Services, which also offer comprehensive solutions such as antivirus, Web content filtering and antispam capabilities. These services enable protection against threats on both application and network layers. FortiGuard Services are continuously updated by the FortiGuard Global Security Research Team, which enables Fortinet to deliver a combination of multi-layered security intelligence and true zero-day protection from new and emerging threats. These updates are delivered to all FortiGate, FortiMail and FortiClient products. Fortinet strictly follows responsible disclosure guidelines to ensure optimum protection during a threat's lifecycle.

References:

Acknowledgement:
  • Haifei Li of Fortinet's FortiGuard Global Security Research Team


Disclaimer:

Although Fortinet has attempted to provide accurate information in these materials, Fortinet assumes no legal responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the information. More specific information is available on request from Fortinet. Please note that Fortinet's product information does not constitute or contain any guarantee, warranty or legally binding representation, unless expressly identified as such in a duly signed writing.

About Fortinet ( www.fortinet.com ):

Fortinet is the pioneer and leading provider of ASIC-accelerated unified threat management, or UTM, security systems, which are used by enterprises and service providers to increase their security while reducing total operating costs. Fortinet solutions were built from the ground up to integrate multiple levels of security protection--including firewall, antivirus, intrusion prevention, VPN, spyware prevention and anti-spam -- designed to help customers protect against network and content level threats. Leveraging a custom ASIC and unified interface, Fortinet solutions offer advanced security functionality that scales from remote office to chassis-based solutions with integrated management and reporting. Fortinet solutions have won multiple awards around the world and are the only security products that are certified in six programs by ICSA Labs: (Firewall, Antivirus, IPSec, SSL, Network IPS, and Anti-Spyware). Fortinet is privately held and based in Sunnyvale, California.