Recently patched vulnerability may have been used in the wild for over a year.
Threat actors are luring Windows 10 and 11 users to enable remote code execution via an Internet Explorer zero-day vulnerability.
According to research from Check Point, this vulnerability has been used in the wild for over one year, potentially impacting millions of users. Known as CVE-2024-38112, a patch was issued by Microsoft yesterday.
The researchers said attackers are using special Windows Internet Shortcut files which, when clicked, would call the retired Internet Explorer (IE) to visit the attacker-controlled URL.
“So, by default, users should not open websites with IE unless the user specifically asks to do so and with the user’s full knowledge,” researchers said.
Malicious .url samples the researcher discovered could be dated back as early as January 2023, suggesting that threat actors have been using the attacking techniques for quite some time.
Written by
Dan Raywood
Senior Editor
SC Media UK
Dan Raywood is a B2B journalist with more than 20 years of experience, including covering cybersecurity for the past 16 years. He has extensively covered topics from Advanced Persistent Threats and nation-state hackers to major data breaches and regulatory changes.
He has spoken at events including 44CON, Infosecurity Europe, RANT Conference, BSides Scotland, Steelcon and ESET Security Days.
Outside work, Dan enjoys supporting Tottenham Hotspur, managing mischievous cats, and sampling craft beers.
