CVE-2008-0015 - PatchNow

📋 Vulnerability Details

Data Source: CIRCL

Confidence: HIGH

Exploitation Method: USER_INTERACTION

CVE Published: 2009-07-07

Added to CISA KEV: 2026-02-17 6069 DAYS BETWEEN CVE AND KEV

🎯 Recommendations:

CRITICAL: Check for indicators of compromise - this vulnerability is in CISA KEV indicating active exploitation in the wild. Review logs, check for unauthorized access, verify system integrity on client systems
Apply Microsoft security updates MS09-032 and MS09-037 immediately
Consider disabling ActiveX controls in web browsers where not required
Implement network monitoring for suspicious web traffic patterns
HIGH patch priority for client systems, especially those with internet access

🔍 Web Intelligence (Kagi · 2026-06-03)

CVE-2008-0015 is a critical security vulnerability involving a stack-based buffer overflow in the `CComVariant::ReadFromStream` function within the Active Template Library (ATL), specifically as it was used in the `MPEG2TuneRequest` ActiveX control (`msvidctl.dll`) in Microsoft DirectShow ^[1].

Attack Method and Exploitation

Method: The vulnerability allows for remote code execution (RCE) ^[1].
Exploitation Requirements: It is a remote attack that typically requires a user to visit a specially crafted web page ^[1].
Impact: Successful exploitation grants the attacker the ability to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the logged-in user ^[1]. This often led to the system connecting to remote servers to download and install additional malware?Name=Exploit:HTML/CVE-2008-0015?kagi_q=CVE-2008-0015+details.

Exploitation in the Wild

Active Exploitation: The vulnerability was actively exploited in the wild following its public disclosure in July 2009?Name=Exploit:HTML/CVE-2008-0015?kagi_q=CVE-2008-0015+details.
Tool Availability: Proof-of-concept exploit code and modules for the Metasploit Framework were made publicly available, facilitating exploitation ^[3].
Campaigns: While widely used by attackers to deliver various forms of malware, it is not historically characterized as being exclusive to specific, modern ransomware campaigns, as it predates the widespread prevalence of the modern ransomware-as-a-service model.

Affected Products and Mitigation

Affected Versions: The vulnerability affected a wide range of legacy Microsoft operating systems, including:

* Windows 2000 SP4 * Windows XP SP2 and SP3 * Windows Server 2003 SP2 * Windows Vista (Gold, SP1, and SP2) * Windows Server 2008 (Gold and SP2) ^[1]

Status: Microsoft addressed this issue through their standard security update process following responsible disclosure ^[2]. Users were advised to apply the relevant security patches provided by Microsoft to mitigate the risk.

*Note: Although the CVE ID contains "2008," the vulnerability was publicly disclosed and addressed in 2009. The ID reflects the year the CVE identifier was assigned by the reporting organization, rather than the year of public disclosure ^[2].*

Sources

NVD - CVE-2008-0015
Description Stack-based buffer overflow in the CComVariant::ReadFromStream function in the Active Template Library (ATL), as used in the MPEG2TuneRequest ActiveX control in msvidctl.dll in DirectShow, in Microsoft Windows 2000 SP4, XP SP2 and SP3, Server 2003 SP2, Vista Gold, SP1, and SP2, and Serve…
Questions about Timing and Microsoft Security
Before I go into the details, the key thing I want customers to understand is that this is an issue that was responsibly reported to us and we have been driving in our standard process towards a security update. ... report from Ryan Smith and Alex Wheeler with IBM ISS X-Force in the early Spring of…
CVE-2008-0015 : Stack-based buffer overflow in the CComVariant...
Vulnerability Details : CVE-2008-0015. Public exploit exists!Metasploit modules for CVE-2008-0015. Microsoft DirectShow (msvidctl.dll) MPEG-2 Memory Corruption. Disclosure Date: 2009-07-05.