Apple will no longer release security updates for the Windows version of QuickTime, leaving two recently-discovered remote code execution vulnerabilities unpatched.
The announcement that QuickTime for Windows is being deprecated was not made by Apple. Instead, Trend Micro-owned ZDI learned of the company’s decision after Steven Seeley of Source Incite reported finding two serious flaws.
The issues found by Seeley are heap corruption vulnerabilities that an attacker can exploit for remote code execution if they can convince the targeted user to access a maliciously crafted website or file.
“One vulnerability occurs an attacker can write data outside of an allocated heap buffer. The other vulnerability occurs in the stco atom where by providing an invalid index, an attacker can write data outside of an allocated heap buffer,” Trend Micro said in a blog post on Thursday.
The flaws were reported to Apple on November 11, 2015, and the vendor informed ZDI on March 9 that it’s deprecating QuickTime on Windows.
Apple has published instructions on how to remove QuickTime for Windows. The company told users that websites increasingly use HTML5 for video playback and advised them to remove legacy plugins to enhance the security of their PC.
The QuickTime plugin has been disabled in OS X and web browsers, which should prevent attackers from exploiting the vulnerabilities found by Seeley via a malicious website.
US-CERT has also published an advisory on the matter, informing users that remote attackers could take control of their systems by exploiting vulnerabilities in QuickTime for Windows.
“Computers running QuickTime for Windows will continue to work after support ends. However, using unsupported software may increase the risks from viruses and other security threats. Potential negative consequences include loss of confidentiality, integrity, or availability of data, as well as damage to system resources or business assets. The only mitigation available is to uninstall QuickTime for Windows,” US-CERT said.
Apple released two security updates for the Windows version of QuickTime last year, patching a total of 18 vulnerabilities that could have been exploited to crash applications or execute arbitrary code. The last round of patches was released in January, when Apple fixed 9 memory corruption flaws that could have led to arbitrary code execution or the unexpected termination of affected apps.
Related: Over 60 vulnerabilities patched in Apple TV
Eduard Kovacs (@EduardKovacs) is a contributing editor at SecurityWeek. He worked as a high school IT teacher for two years before starting a career in journalism as Softpedia’s security news reporter. Eduard holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial informatics and a master’s degree in computer techniques applied in electrical engineering.
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