Known exploited vulnerability
CVE-2017-8540
The short answer
CVE-2017-8540 affects Microsoft Corporation Malware Protection Engine and is rated high (CVSS 7.8). CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2022-03-03: attackers are using it, so patch it first. The vendor has linked a patch.
What it is
The Microsoft Malware Protection Engine running on Microsoft Forefront and Microsoft Defender on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 Gold, 1511, 1607, and 1703, and Windows Server 2016, Microsoft Exchange Server 2013 and 2016, does not properly scan a specially crafted file leading to memory corruption. aka "Microsoft Malware Protection Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability", a different vulnerability than CVE-2017-8538 and CVE-2017-8541.
Weakness: CWE-787.
Severity
7.8 high
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploited (CISA KEV)
Yes, since Mar 3, 2022
Federal due date Mar 24, 2022
EPSS, next 30 days
72%
Higher than 99% of scored CVEs
How it can be exploited
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- High
- Integrity impact
- High
- Availability impact
- High
What CISA says to do
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Affected products
Malware Protection Engine. NVD's record lists the exact affected versions.
References
- portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2017-8540 MitigationPatchVendor Advisory
- www.exploit-db.com/exploits/42088/ ExploitThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2017-8540 MitigationPatchVendor Advisory
- www.exploit-db.com/exploits/42088/ ExploitThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2017-8540 US Government Resource
Questions
Is CVE-2017-8540 being exploited?
Yes. CISA added CVE-2017-8540 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2022-03-03, with a federal remediation due date of 2022-03-24.
How do I fix CVE-2017-8540?
CISA's required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
From NVD, CISA KEV, FIRST EPSS and OSV.dev, checked . Status on NVD: Analyzed. The description is NVD's text, quoted as published.
Related
Latest CVEs this week
Critical and High CVEs from the last 7 days, with KEV and EPSS.
Exploited vulnerabilities by vendor
Every vendor in CISA's KEV catalog, with its count.
Microsoft exploited vulnerabilities
Everything CISA lists as exploited for Microsoft.
Vulnerability watch
A briefing and a fix pull request when an advisory hits your dependencies.
Know the day a CVE lands in your code
Connect a GitHub repository and ZeusQA checks its dependencies daily, briefs each advisory and opens the fix. Three test runs free, no card.