Microsoft Windows Mark of the Web (MOTW) Protection Mechanism Failure Vulnerability

[ Why it matters ]Priority signals

• Exploited in the wild: on CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list since 2024-09-10
• EPSS: 10% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days (higher than 96% of CVEs)

[ Description ]Official description

Windows Mark of the Web Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability

CISA: Microsoft Windows Mark of the Web (MOTW) contains a protection mechanism failure vulnerability that allows an attacker to bypass MOTW-based defenses. This can result in a limited loss of integrity and availability of security features such as Protected View in Microsoft Office, which rely on MOTW tagging.

[ Fixes ]Fixes and patches

CISA required action (US federal deadline 1 Oct 2024): Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

• Patch on msrc.microsoft.comVendor patch or bulletin · NVD · Reference tagged 'Patch' by NVD

[ References ]References

• msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2024-38217PatchVendor Advisory
• www.elastic.co/security-labs/dismantling-smart-app-controlExploitThird Party Advisory
• www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalogUS Government Resource