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Windows Movie MakerApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2010-2564

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2010-08-11
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
Buffer overflow in Microsoft Windows Movie Maker (WMM) 2.1, 2.6, and 6.0 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted project file, aka "Movie Maker Memory Corruption 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 buffer overflow vulnerability exists in Microsoft Windows Movie Maker versions 2.1, 2.6, and 6.0 that allows remote code execution or denial of service through memory corruption. The vulnerability is triggered when the application parses a specially crafted project file (.mswmm), leading to heap-based buffer overflow and arbitrary code execution.

MitigationApply the relevant Microsoft security update (MS10-037) to patch the vulnerability, or disable/uninstall Windows Movie Maker if not required. Avoid opening project files from untrusted sources.

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
Windows Movie MakerApplication
Affected:= 2.1= 2.6= 6.0

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. Confirm Windows Movie Maker is installed
    Check for the presence of Movie Maker by looking in the Program Files directory (typically C:\Program Files\Movie Maker or C:\Program Files (x86)\Movie Maker) or by searching for moviemk.exe on the system
    Affected if The Movie Maker application directory or moviemk.exe file exists on the system
  2. Identify the installed Movie Maker version
    Right-click on moviemk.exe and select Properties, then view the Version tab to see the File Version, or use the command: dir /s C:\moviemk.exe and check the version property of the executable
    Affected if The displayed version matches 2.1, 2.6, or 6.0 exactly
  3. Verify the .mswmm file association
    Check if .mswmm files are associated with Movie Maker by looking in Windows Explorer under Tools > Folder Options > File Types, or check the registry key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.mswmm
    Affected if The .mswmm file type is registered and associated with Movie Maker, indicating the vulnerable component is active
  4. Confirm the application is enabled and usable
    Attempt to launch Movie Maker (moviemk.exe) or check if it appears in the Start Menu under Accessories or Windows Live, or verify the application is not disabled or uninstalled
    Affected if Movie Maker launches successfully or appears as an available application on the system

The system is affected if Windows Movie Maker versions 2.1, 2.6, or 6.0 are installed and the application can open .mswmm project files, as the vulnerability is triggered during parsing of these files.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the relevant Microsoft security update (MS10-037) to patch the vulnerability, or disable/uninstall Windows Movie Maker if not required. Avoid opening project files from untrusted sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

Microsoft released MS10-019 security update in 2010 to patch this vulnerability. For systems running unsupported OS (Windows XP ended 2014, Windows Vista ended 2017), upgrade to a supported Windows version.

  1. Apply Microsoft Security Bulletin MS10-019, which addresses this vulnerability in Windows Movie Maker
  2. Open Windows Update (Start > All Programs > Windows Update)
  3. Check for and install all available security updates
  4. If on Windows XP or Windows Vista, consider upgrading to a supported Windows version as these operating systems are no longer supported
  5. Alternatively, uninstall Windows Movie Maker if not needed to reduce attack surface
  6. For continued video editing needs, migrate to Windows Live Movie Maker (for Windows 7) or the Photos app video editor (Windows 10/11)
Caveat Windows XP and Windows Vista are no longer supported by Microsoft; upgrading may require hardware changes and application migration.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Windows Movie Maker Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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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-2010-2564 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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