Effects
MS08-015 is not categorized as virus, worm, Trojan or backdoor. It is a critical vulnerability in different versions of Outlook, which allows arbitrary code to be remotely executed in the vulnerable computer.
The vulnerability is due because Outlook does not perform sufficient validation of mailto URIs passed to the Outlook client.
The affected versions are:
- 2007 Office System: Outlook 2007.
- Office 2003 SP3: Outlook 2003 SP3.
- Office 2003 SP2: Outlook 2003 SP2.
- Office XP SP3: Outlook 2002 SP3.
- Office 2000 SP3: Outlook 2000 SP3.
If exploited successfully, MS08-015 allows hackers to gain remote control of the affected computer with the same privileges as the logged on user. If this user had administrator rights, the hacker could take complete control of the system: create, modify or delete files, install programs, create new user accounts, etc.
This vulnerability is usually exploited by hosting a specially crafted website and enticing users into clicking in a specially crafted mailto URI. The link to the malicious website can be distributed through different means such as email or instant messaging programs.
If you have any of the vulnerable versions of Outlook, it is recommended to download and apply the security patch for this vulnerability. Click here to access the web page for downloading the patch.
Bear in mind, that this security bulletin replaces a previous bulletin, called MS07-003.