Targets/OS

Targets are unique operating system identifiers taken from the versions of those specific operating systems which adapt the selected exploit module to run on that particular version of the operating system. The show targets command issued within an exploit module view will display all available vulnerable targets for that specific exploit, while issuing the same command in the root menu, outside of any selected exploit module, will let us know that we need to select an exploit module first.

Selecting target

If we want to find out more about this specific module and what the vulnerability behind it does, we can use the info command. the info command should be one of the first steps we take when using a new module. This way, we can familiarize ourselves with the exploit functionality while assuring a safe, clean working environment for both our clients and us.

Check out the Available targets

msf6 exploit(windows/browser/ie_execcommand_uaf) > info

       Name: MS12-063 Microsoft Internet Explorer execCommand Use-After-Free Vulnerability 
     Module: exploit/windows/browser/ie_execcommand_uaf
   Platform: Windows
       Arch: 
 Privileged: No
    License: Metasploit Framework License (BSD)
       Rank: Good
  Disclosed: 2012-09-14

Provided by:
  unknown
  eromang
  binjo
  sinn3r <[email protected]>
  juan vazquez <[email protected]>

Available targets:
  Id  Name
  --  ----
  0   Automatic
  1   IE 7 on Windows XP SP3
  2   IE 8 on Windows XP SP3
  3   IE 7 on Windows Vista
  4   IE 8 on Windows Vista
  5   IE 8 on Windows 7
  6   IE 9 on Windows 7

Check supported:
  No

Basic options:
  Name       Current Setting  Required  Description
  ----       ---------------  --------  -----------
  OBFUSCATE  false            no        Enable JavaScript obfuscation
  SRVHOST    0.0.0.0          yes       The local host to listen on. This must be an address on the local machine or 0.0.0.0
  SRVPORT    8080             yes       The local port to listen on.
  SSL        false            no        Negotiate SSL for incoming connections
  SSLCert                     no        Path to a custom SSL certificate (default is randomly generated)
  URIPATH                     no        The URI to use for this exploit (default is random)

Payload information:

Description:
  This module exploits a vulnerability found in Microsoft Internet 
  Explorer (MSIE). When rendering an HTML page, the CMshtmlEd object 
  gets deleted in an unexpected manner, but the same memory is reused 
  again later in the CMshtmlEd::Exec() function, leading to a 
  use-after-free condition. Please note that this vulnerability has 
  been exploited since Sep 14, 2012. Also, note that 
  presently, this module has some target dependencies for the ROP 
  chain to be valid. For WinXP SP3 with IE8, msvcrt must be present 
  (as it is by default). For Vista or Win7 with IE8, or Win7 with IE9, 
  JRE 1.6.x or below must be installed (which is often the case).

References:
  https://cvedetails.com/cve/CVE-2012-4969/
  OSVDB (85532)
  https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/SecurityBulletins/2012/MS12-063
  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/security/advisory/2757760
  http://eromang.zataz.com/2012/09/16/zero-day-season-is-really-not-over-yet/

We can also use the command show targets.

Leaving the selection to Automatic will let msfconsole know that it needs to perform service detection on the given target before launching a successful attack.

If we, however, know what versions are running on our target, we can use the set target <index no.> command to pick a target from the list.

Target types

There is a large variety of target types. Every target can vary from another by service pack, OS version, and even language version. It all depends on the return address and other parameters in the target or within the exploit module.

To identify a target correctly, we will need to:

  • Obtain a copy of the target binaries

  • Use msfpescan to locate a suitable return address

It will be explained later in details.

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