back to article Single IPv6 packet kills Kaspersky-protected PCs, fix emerges

Kaspersky Lab has fixed a bug that could freeze PCs with Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 installed if they received a specially malformed IPv6 packet. Earlier this week infosec bod Marc Heuse reported that sending a fragmented IPv6 network packet with multiple extension headers, one of which is unusually long, to a Windows …

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  1. Select * From Handle

    Great!

    Now what about the flaw in Kaspersky security center.

    You know.... the one that when your licences are due to renew, the week notice that appears on all the clients that have KAV install which also cause all the clients to block all network communication and freeze them.

    or the flaw where you upgrade versions which causes the same locking out and freezing..

    You have gone down in my books kaspersky...

  2. tkioz
    FAIL

    Ping of Death?

    Seriously the ping of death makes a come back in 2013? Talk about crazy.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Ping of Death?

      Yeah! Courtesy of the IPv6, we are going to see a lot more of this coming back from the dead. As if we did not have enough trouble with reconfiguring firewalls to work with IPv6.

  3. spegru
    WTF?

    Why

    do we still need antivirus in 2013?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Facepalm

      Re: Why

      "do we still need antivirus in 2013?"

      Because people still use Windows.

    2. Elmer Phud

      Re: Why

      "do we still need antivirus in 2013?"

      Because the majority of users just click on things.

      Remember, the internet is nowadays sold as a 'point and click' product - it's another thing that is there in the house as a consumer product. I wouldn't expect your average punter understand the basic of how a washing machine works so I don't expect them to have a clue about not clicking on a link that has come from a family member without looking first.

      Cars without air-bags isn't a bad idea for a careful driver, it's the other 95% that have to be accounted for.

      1. Christian Berger

        Re: Why

        "Because the majority of users just click on things."

        If "just clicking on things" causes your computer to become compromised, it's not the fault of the user, it's the fault of the computer. Seriously, why do we have browsers _suggesting_ to execute an .exe file it just downloaded?

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Megaphone

          Re: Why

          Because I want to. If I want to save something, I'll click SAVE.

        2. Nagy, Balázs András
          Thumb Down

          Re: Why

          If they wouldn't, then the users would click on the files themselves. I've seen it done. Some just want to get something nasty. Because the mail said their d--cks will be harder, or something else.

        3. pixl97

          Re: Christian Berger

          >If "just clicking on things" causes your computer to become compromised, it's not the fault of the user

          Most modern browsers don't, not even IE. Most of the 'just click on things" these days are fake A/V warnings meant to trick the dull (some of them are pretty good). How is a browser suppose to stop someone from purposely downloading a file and running it (but the prompt said I had a virus and I needed to run this to remover it!)?

          A/V is still mostly useless because the malware writers make lots of copies of their crap and release the ones that pass A/V detection that day, then release a new batch every day after that. A/V is a losing game.

        4. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          @Christian Berger - Re: Why

          Because a computer is always dumb, it will do exactly as told assuming you know what you're doing.

  4. Annihilator
    Facepalm

    So malicious packet causes system to lock up - should probably get a security suite to deal with tha... oh.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Flame

    Well thats what you get when ...

    ... you let 3rd party software run in kernel mode. Yes I know drivers etc, but they're a necessity. Virus checkers should not be if the OS was designed properly.

  6. Christian Berger

    Companies trying to sell you security in a box...

    ...typically aren't very good at understanding security.

  7. Roland6 Silver badge

    IPv6?

    Well surely the workaround to this is to continue using IPv4 ...

    I wonder how many users of Kaspersky were actually at risk from this exploit...

    1. Christian Berger

      Re: IPv6?

      Continuing to use IPv4 is not an option. For example in Germany most residential ISPs only hand out one IP address. You can use some ugly NAT hacks to kinda work with multiple computers, but that often fails.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        @Christian Berger - Re: IPv6?

        Here too in Canada my ISP gave me only one IP address but my Linksys router can cope with it using only NAT without any hack. And don't you dare calling NAT ugly, OK? That's profanity!

        Sorry I can't chose Joke alert icon.

      2. WatAWorld

        Re: IPv6?

        What does one IP address have to do with it?

        Was it one IPv4 or one IPv6 address?

  8. DB2DBA

    flawed

    And the additional flaw where it foists the next version on you even though you did not request the download.

  9. pixl97

    Not the last IPv6 problem we will see.

    IPv6 is going to go thru all the growing pains IPv4 did so many years ago. Now most IPv4 kit has been rolled up in libraries and modules for so long that the developers have forgot all the magic that's been done to keep it from exploding in users faces.

  10. JeffyPooh
    Pint

    I really enjoy Kaspersky FAILs

    Smug little b@$tards. LOL.

    Symantec and McAfee I merely hate.

    1. Frood8

      Re: I really enjoy Kaspersky FAILs

      go for norton, dont you just love it

      1. JeffyPooh
        Pint

        Re: I really enjoy Kaspersky FAILs

        You don't recognize the name Symantec?

  11. Frood8

    Why do we have to go through the rigmarole of having only 1 years protection, at a silly cost to us all, and a great gain to the antivirus people.

    I use Avast, i dont do online banking, and as we all know it's completely safe, yeah right, and with avast i get the basic protection every year.

    When are these companies going to wake up and smell the coffee, someday someone is going to say, b0ll0cks to the lot of them and design a totally free package.

    And lets face it, what little tweeks do they put in there so as to gain access.

    I was given a kaspersky pure package, never been used, still in the box, i have seen mixed reviews, mmmm, do i use it, or chuck it in the bin.

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