The National Coordination Center for Computer Incidents (NKTsKI), created by the FSB, reported the discovery of a dangerous zero-day vulnerability in Windows operating systems (OS). This is stated in the bulletin published on the NKTsKI portal “User safety on the Internet”. This gap is exploited by cybercriminals to infect computers with malware.
The loophole affects Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10 users, as well as Windows Server 2008, 2012, 2016, 2019, and 2022.
“The exploitation of a vulnerability in Microsoft MSHTML allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on a target system by opening a specially crafted Microsoft Office document by a user. The vulnerability is caused by incorrect validation of input data in the MSHTML component, ”the message says.
Attackers use the vulnerability in attacks using social engineering, the NKTsKI said. They convince users to open an infected Microsoft Office document and use this loophole to download malware.
“Given the increased interest of cybercriminals in this vulnerability and the lack of official fixes from Microsoft, prerequisites are being created for mass infection of users with various malware,” they warned.
To eliminate the threat, it is recommended to disable the ability to install ActiveX controls in the OS and preview documents in Windows Explorer.
In August, Microsoft warned of the discovery of a flaw in the Azure cloud platform. Thanks to it, attackers could gain access to databases of thousands of companies, including Coca-Cola, Exxon-Mobil and Citrix. The vulnerability allowed loading, deleting or modifying databases. According to Microsoft, there was no evidence at that time that someone had managed to use the discovered loophole. The vulnerability itself in the cloud could exist from several months to several years.
