Rule: 

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Sid: 
3549

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Summary: 
This event is generated when an attempt is made to exploit a known
vulnerability in Microsoft Internet Explorer.

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Impact: 
Serious. Code execution may be possible.

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Detailed Information:
A programming error in Microsoft Internet Explorer may allow an attacker
to execute code of their choosing on a vulnerable host. Specifically,
the error lies in the handling of hostnames longer than 256 characters.
When IE tries to process a hostname of this length or longer, the
process may crash or cause the application to become unstable,
presenting the attacker with an opportunity to execute code of their
choosing on an affected system.

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Affected Systems:
	Internet Explorer 6 on Windows XP service pack 2

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Attack Scenarios: 
An attacker need only supply the victim with a hostname part of a URL of
256 characters or more to cause the error to occur.

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Ease of Attack: 
Supplying the hostname of sufficient length is simple, exploitation
afterwards is difficult.

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False Positives:
None known.

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False Negatives:
None known.

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Corrective Action: 
Apply the appropriate vendor supplied patch

Upgrade to the latest non-affected version of the software.

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Contributors:
Sourcefire Vulnerability Research Team
Brian Caswell <bmc@sourcefire.com>
Nigel Houghton <nigel.houghton@sourcefire.com>

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Additional References:

US-CERT:
http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/756122

iDefense:
http://www.idefense.com/application/poi/display?id=229&type=vulnerabilities

Microsoft:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/Bulletin/MS05-020.mspx

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