CVEs / CVE-2010-0249
CVE-2010-0249: Microsoft Internet Explorer Use-After-Free Vulnerability
- Known exploited in the CISA KEV catalog since 20 May 2026
- high 8.8 CVSS 3.1 (NVD)
- EPSS 91.9% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 99% of CVEs (30 Oct 2026)
- Last changed at its sources
Are you affected? Check your servers with Stackurity: it lists the software on each server and the vulnerabilities to fix first.
Check your servers with Stackurity Already using Stackurity? Search for CVE-2010-0249
Summary
Microsoft Internet Explorer contains an use-after-free vulnerability that could allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code by accessing a pointer associated with a deleted object. The impacted product could be end-of-life (EoL) and/or end-of-service (EoS). Users should discontinue product utilization.
Description
Use-after-free vulnerability in Microsoft Internet Explorer 6, 6 SP1, 7, and 8 on Windows 2000 SP4; Windows XP SP2 and SP3; Windows Server 2003 SP2; Windows Vista Gold, SP1, and SP2; Windows Server 2008 Gold, SP2, and R2; and Windows 7 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code by accessing a pointer associated with a deleted object, related to incorrectly initialized memory and improper handling of objects in memory, as exploited in the wild in December 2009 and January 2010 during Operation Aurora, aka "HTML Object Memory Corruption Vulnerability."
Affected and fixed versions
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| n/a n/a | n/a | — |
Exploitation
| In CISA KEV since | 20 May 2026 |
|---|---|
| Due date for US federal agencies | 3 Jun 2026 |
| Used in ransomware campaigns | Unknown |
| Required action | Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. |
Severity
| CVSS 3.1 | 8.8 highCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HScored by NVD |
|---|---|
| Weakness | CWE-416 |
References
- CVE-2010-0249 on NVD
- CVE-2010-0249 in the CISA KEV catalog
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/SecurityAdvisories/2010/979352 (cited by CISA)
- http://blogs.technet.com/msrc/archive/2010/01/14/security-advisory-979352.aspx Broken Link, Vendor Advisory
- http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10435232-245.html Broken Link
- http://osvdb.org/61697 Broken Link
- http://securitytracker.com/id?1023462 Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://support.microsoft.com/kb/979352 Patch, Vendor Advisory
- http://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/11167 Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/492515 Third Party Advisory, US Government Resource
- http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/979352.mspx Broken Link, Patch, Vendor Advisory
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/37815 Broken Link, Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA10-055A.html Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, US Government Resource
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2010/0135 Broken Link
- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2010/ms10-002 Patch, Vendor Advisory
- https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/55642 Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A6835 Broken Link
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2010-0249 US Government Resource
Sources
Exploitation status from the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. EPSS scores from FIRST. Descriptions, severity and references from the National Vulnerability Database. Open-source package versions from OSV (CC-BY 4.0). Text is shown as each source states it; Stackurity does not edit it. Check the vendor's advisory before acting.
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.