Revision History
NoneRisk Impact
Low
| Remote Access |
Yes |
| Local Access |
No |
| Authentication Required |
No |
| Exploit available |
No |
Overview
Norton AntiVirus and Symantec Client Security are susceptible to an email denial of Service (DoS) attack which could be triggered by a specially crafted email message.Affected Products
| Product |
Version |
Solution |
| Norton AntiVirus |
2005 through 2008 |
Run LiveUpdate in interactive mode |
| Norton Internet Security |
2005 through 2008 |
Run LiveUpdate in interactive mode |
| Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition |
9.0 MR6 and earlier |
Update to 9.0 MR7 or later |
| 10.0 all versions |
Update to 10.1 MR8 or later |
| 10.1 MR7 and earlier |
Update to 10.1 MR8 or later |
| 10.2 MR2 and earlier |
Update to 10.2 MR3 or later |
| Symantec Client Security |
2.0 MR6 and earlier |
Update to 2.0 MR7 or later |
| 3.0 all versions |
Update to 3.1 MR8 or later |
| 3.1 MR7 and earlier |
Update to 3.1 MR8 or later |
Note: Symantec AntiVirus and Symantec Client Security are vulnerable only if the optional Internet Email Scanning feature has been installed and enabled on the client.
Unaffected Products
| Product |
Version |
| Norton 360 |
all |
| Norton AntiVirus |
2009 and later |
| Norton Confidential |
all |
| Norton Internet Security |
2009 and later |
| Symantec Endpoint Protection |
all |
Details
Next Generation Security Software notified Symantec that a specially crafted email could potentially create a Denial of Service (DoS) condition on an end user system. The malicious message would require a significantly longer than normal time to process, which could cause the client system to lose connection with the mail server. The email client will try to download the message again the next time it connects to the mail server, and again lose connection. This cycle would be repeated until the malicious message was deleted from the mail server.Symantec Response
Symantec has confirmed that this issue exists in the products listed in the Affected Products table above. The vulnerability can be exploited only if the optional Internet Email Scanning feature is enabled on the user’s system.
Symantec is not aware of any customers impacted by this issue, or of any attempts to exploit the issue.Mitigation
Internet Email Scanning is an optional feature which can disabled if it is not being used. Disabling this feature prevents it from being exploited through this vulnerability.Updating Norton products
Norton product users who launch and run LiveUpdate regularly have already received an update to address this issue. However, to ensure all available updates have been applied, users can manually launch and run LiveUpdate in interactive mode as follows:
- Open any installed Norton product
- Click LiveUpdate
- Run LiveUpdate until all available product updates are downloaded and installed
- A reboot may be required, depending on the existing patch level of the affected computer.
Best Practices
As part of normal best practices, Symantec strongly recommends a multi-layered approach to security:
- Run under the principle of least privilege where possible.
- Keep all operating systems and applications updated with the latest vendor patches.
- Run both a personal firewall and antivirus application with current updates to provide multiple points of detection and protection.
- Be cautious when receiving attachments, executables, and web links through email. Do not open email from unknown senders.
- Email addresses can easily be spoofed so that a message appears to come from someone you know. If in doubt, contact the sender before opening attachments or following web links.
Credit
Symantec thanks Mark Litchfield from Next Generation Security Software (
http://www.ngssoftware.com/) for reporting this issue, and coordinating with us on the response.
References
SecurityFocus,
http://www.securityfocus.com, has assigned BID 34670 to this issue
This issues is a candidate for inclusion in the CVE list (
http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for security problems. The CVE-ID, CVE-2009-3104 has been assigned for this issue.
Symantec takes the security and proper functionality of our products very seriously. As founding members of the Organization for Internet Safety (OISafety), Symantec supports and follows responsible disclosure
guidelines.
Please contact
secure@symantec.com if you feel you have discovered a security issue in a Symantec product. A member of the Symantec Product Security team will contact you regarding your submission to coordinate any required response. Symantec strongly recommends using encrypted email for reporting vulnerability information to
secure@symantec.com. The Symantec Product Security PGP key can be found at the location below.
Symantec has developed a Product Vulnerability Response document outlining the process we follow in addressing suspected vulnerabilities in our products. This document is available below.
Copyright (c) by Symantec Corp.
Permission to redistribute this alert electronically is granted as long as it is not edited in any way unless authorized by Symantec Product Security. Reprinting the whole or part of this alert in any medium other than electronically requires permission from
secure@symantec.comDisclaimer
The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition. There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect, or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on, this information.Symantec, Symantec products, Symantec Product Security, and
secure@symantec.com are registered trademarks of Symantec Corp. and/or affiliated companies in the United States and other countries. All other registered and unregistered trademarks represented in this document are the sole property of their respective companies/owners.
Symantec Product Vulnerability Management PGP Key
