Executable installers are vulnerable^WEVIL (case 46): Pelles C allows arbitrary code execution

Hi @ll,

the executable installers of "Pelle's C",
<http://smorgasbordet.com/pellesc/800/setup64.exe> and,
<http://smorgasbordet.com/pellesc/800/setup.exe>, available
from <http://smorgasbordet.com/pellesc/index.htm>, are vulnerable
to DLL hijacking: they load (tested on Windows 7) at least the
following DLLs from their "application directory" instead Windows'
"system directory": Version.dll, MSI.dll, UXTheme.dll, DWMAPI.dll,
RichEd20.dll and CryptBase.dll

See <https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/426.html>,
<https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/427.html>
<https://capec.mitre.org/data/definitions/471.html>,
<https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/2269637.aspx>,
<https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff919712.aspx> and
<https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms682586.aspx> for this
well-known and well-documented vulnerability^WBEGINNER'S ERROR!


For programs downloaded from the internet the "application
directory" is typically the user's "Downloads" directory; see
<https://insights.sei.cmu.edu/cert/2008/09/carpet-bombing-and-directory-poisoning.html>
and <http://blog.acrossecurity.com/2012/02/downloads-folder-binary-planting.html>


If one of the DLLs named above is placed in the users "Downloads"
directory (for example per "drive-by download") this vulnerability
becomes a remote code execution.

JFTR: there is ABSOLUTELY no need for executable installers on
      Windows! DUMP THIS CRAP!

JFTR: naming a program "Setup.exe" is another beginner's error:
      Windows' does some VERY special things when it encounters
      this filename!


Mitigations:
~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Don't use executable installers! NEVER!
  Don't use self-extractors! NEVER!

  See <http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2015/Nov/101> and
  <http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2015/Dec/86> plus
  <http://home.arcor.de/skanthak/!execute.html> alias
  <https://skanthak.homepage.t-online.de/!execute.html> for more
  information.

* Add an ACE "(D;OIIO;WP;;;WD)" to the ACL of every "%USERPROFILE%";
  use <https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa374928.aspx> to
  decode it to "deny execution of files in this directory for
  everyone, inheritable to all files in all subdirectories".


stay tuned
Stefan Kanthak


Timeline:
~~~~~~~~~

2017-01-05    sent vulnerability report to author

              no reply, not even an acknowledgement of receipt

2017-01-13    resent vulnerability report to author

              no reply, not even an acknowledgement of receipt

2017-01-21    report published