Are you being explotied?

Software exploits are attack techniques managed by attackers to quietly install malware.  Trojans or backdoors are fastened into computers without requiring social engineering to trick victims into manually running a malicious program.

Malware installation through an exploit would be invisible to users and gives attackers an obvious advantage.

Exploitation Targets

Here are some applications most targeted by attackers through exploitation:

• Web browsers (Microsoft Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Mozilla Firefox and others).
• Plug-ins for browsers (Adobe Flash Player, Oracle Java, Microsoft Silverlight).
• The Windows operating system itself – notably the Win32 subsystem driver – win32k.sys.
• Adobe Reader and Adobe Acrobat

The most dangerous exploit attack is remotely installing code into the operating system.  Downloading or running vulnerable software increases the chance of your system becoming infected with malware.

While PDF’s are the most common document files, they can be dangerous if obtained from an unreliable source.  Adobe has extended the file format to maximize its data exchange functionality by  granting scripting and the embedding of various objects into files.  This can be exploited by an attacker.

Another target is the Adobe Flash Player.  This plug-in is used for playback of content on various browsers.  The Adobe Flash Player is updated regularly and notifies you when it’s time to upgrade.  Most vulnerabilities are of Remote Code Execution (RCE) which indicates that attackers use susceptibilities for remotely executing malicious code on a victim’s computer.

Java is also a popular browser plug-in attractive to attackers.  More than three billion devices are using this platform.  Java is vulnerable to malicious attacks and is one of the most dangerous components.  When you use Java on Windows, its security settings can be changed using the control panel applet.  Latest versions of security settings allow you to configure the environment more accurately.


Windows operating systems itself can be used by attackers to remotely execute code.  The figure below shows the number of patches the each components have received during 2013.

This shows Internet Explorer fixed the greatest number of vulnerabilities.  More than a  hundred vulnerabilities have been fixed in the course of fourteen updates.

Windows Operating System

Newer versions of Microsoft Windows – i.e., Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 have built-in mechanisms which help protect users from destructive actions delivered by exploits.  Features became available with Windows Vista was upgraded in the most recent operating system versions.

http://www.hyphenet.com/blog/2013/12/13/are-you-being-explotied/

This shows Internet Explorer fixed the greatest number of vulnerabilities.  More than a  hundred vulnerabilities have been fixed in the course of fourteen updates.

Windows Operating System

Newer versions of Microsoft Windows – i.e., Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 have built-in mechanisms which help protect users from destructive actions delivered by exploits.  Features became available with Windows Vista was upgraded in the most recent operating system versions.

http://www.hyphenet.com/blog/2013/12/13/are-you-being-explotied/

 

Windows Operating System

Newer versions of Microsoft Windows – i.e., Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 have built-in mechanisms which help protect users from destructive actions delivered by exploits.  Features became available with Windows Vista was upgraded in the most recent operating system versions.

http://www.hyphenet.com/blog/2013/12/13/are-you-being-explotied/

All operating systems or programs used are studied by attackers for vulnerabilities.  Their intent is to exploit for financial gain.  Adobe, Google, and Microsoft are all taking steps to make these attacks more difficult to achieve.

To protest yourself, change your system settings for a more secure application and keep your software up-to-date.

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References:

Exploit Protection for Microsoft Windows – We Live Security
http://www.welivesecurity.com/2013/12/13/exploit-protection-for-microsoft-windows/