WinZip Problems
WinZip is an application developed by WinZip Computing for Microsoft Windows and is a file archiver and compressor. Though it is very convenient and user oriented it does have a set of flaws, which can be corrected. A few users after installation of Winzip version 6.3 or 7.0 on their Personal Computer that works on Windows 95 face a problem when running Windows Explorer, version 7 for Windows 95. They receive an error message that displays the following ‘Explorer: This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down.’ And when clicking on the details the following error message is received ‘Explorer caused an invalid page fault in module [unknown>] at: [address]’. The error can be fixed by just modifying the registry.
Also Vulnerabilities have been found in WinZip versions 3.x, 6.x, 7.x, 8.x and 9.x. The users of Winzip have been warned of this problem and its problem is rated as highly critical by Security firm Secunia. The loop in these versions of WinZip enable a remote hacker to execute a malicious and arbitrary code. The problem is caused by a flaw in the way WinZip handles inputs from the command line, and can be exploited by a malicious hacker to cause a buffer overflow. In other words it allows the hacker to gain user access through a local system or network. WinZip Computing Inc. located at Mansfield, Connecticut reported that the problems were revealed during an internal evaluation of the WinZip code. Michael Haisley, who manages Bethesda, Md.-based Internet Storm Center, and a concern of the SANS INSTITUTE, however noted that vulnerabilities in WinZip were also exposed back in February. The company has released an upgrade, WinZip 9.0 Service Release 1 and this patch claims to take control of the buffer overflow issue. Service Release 1 also pops up security warnings when the user tries to execute any files in WinZip that are potentially dangerous.
With respect to the problems that are with the version and how the flaw occurs is as described. Version 8 had its problem in the “/zipandemail option” and could be exploited if an automated logging system used this option or a user deliberately selected it. Version 9 the vulnerability could be exploited if a user would open a distorted ZIP file provided by an attacker, either over the web or in an e-mail message. For this purpose, it has been recommended by the company that users should upgrade to version 9 and get the fix as well completely free and those users who are new to WinZip a free evaluation patch is available for a period of 21 days and after its expiry they would have to pay a $29 licence fee for WinZip. And its best to keep updating the antivirus software and not open unknown files.
Earlier to this Winzip had a problem with the specially designed MIME archives, once the file was extracted and then opened it would trick WinZip into executing code contained in the attacking file. Moreover Version 10 of WinZip also suffers from the same security hole, but WinZip 10.0 build 7245 which solves this problem.
Get a Free Online Diagnostic Scan with RegCure PC Optimizer (Download Takes 2 Mins)
