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DirectxApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2010-1879

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2010-06-08
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Unspecified vulnerability in Quartz.dll for DirectShow; Windows Media Format Runtime 9, 9.5, and 11; Media Encoder 9; and the Asycfilt.dll COM component allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a media file with crafted compression data, aka "Media Decompression Vulnerability."

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

A memory corruption vulnerability in Windows media processing components (Quartz.dll, Asycfilt.dll, Windows Media Format Runtime) allows remote code execution when parsing media files with specially crafted compression data. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of decompressed media data during playback, enabling an attacker to inject and execute arbitrary code via a malicious media file.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update (MS10-033) which addresses this vulnerability in affected Windows components. Until patched, exercise extreme caution with media files from untrusted sources and disable automatic processing of media files where possible.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
DirectxApplication
Affected:= 9.0= 9.0a= 9.0b= 9.0c
Windows Media Format RuntimeApplication
Affected:= 9= 9.5= 11
Windows Media EncoderApplication
Affected:= 9

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check DirectX version
    Open Command Prompt and run 'dxdiag' to view the DirectX version installed. Look for the DirectX Version field on the Display and Software devices tabs.
    Affected if DirectX version is 9.0, 9.0a, 9.0b, or 9.0c
  2. Check Windows Media Format Runtime version
    Open Command Prompt and run 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Media Format" /v Version' to query the installed version of Windows Media Format Runtime.
    Affected if Version returned is 9.0, 9.5, or 11.0 (these correspond to affected versions 9, 9.5, and 11)
  3. Check if Windows Media Encoder is installed
    Open Control Panel and navigate to 'Programs and Features' or check the installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Windows Media Encoder) for Windows Media Encoder 9.
    Affected if Windows Media Encoder version 9 is installed on the system
  4. Verify media processing components exist
    Check for the presence of vulnerable DLLs. Run 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup" /v InstallationDir' to find the Windows system directory, then check for quartz.dll and asycfilt.dll in that location.
    Affected if quartz.dll and asycfilt.dll exist in the Windows system directory (indicating the vulnerable components are present)
  5. Determine if automatic media processing is enabled
    Open Windows Media Player, go to Tools > Options > Player, and check if 'Automatically download codecs' is enabled. Also check browser settings for automatic media playback.
    Affected if Automatic codec downloading or automatic media file processing is enabled, making the system more susceptible to remote exploitation via malicious media files

A system is affected if it runs any combination of DirectX 9.0/9.0a/9.0b/9.0c, Windows Media Format Runtime 9/9.5/11, or Windows Media Encoder 9, particularly if automatic media processing features are enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update (MS10-033) which addresses this vulnerability in affected Windows components. Until patched, exercise extreme caution with media files from untrusted sources and disable automatic processing of media files where possible.

Fix this in Directx Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2010-1879 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data