CVE-2010-5156
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 · uneditedRace condition in CA Internet Security Suite Plus 2010 6.0.0.272 on Windows XP allows local users to bypass kernel-mode hook handlers, and execute dangerous code that would otherwise be blocked by a handler but not blocked by signature-based malware detection, via certain user-space memory changes during hook-handler execution, aka an argument-switch attack or a KHOBE attack. NOTE: this issue is disputed by some third parties because it is a flaw in a protection mechanism for situations where a crafted program has already begun to execute
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 · moderate confidenceA race condition in CA Internet Security Suite Plus 2010 allows local attackers to manipulate user-space memory during kernel-mode hook handler execution, bypassing security controls. This 'argument-switch' or 'KHOBE' attack exploits timing windows between hook handler invocation and signature-based malware detection. The issue is disputed by some as it represents a bypass mechanism rather than a traditional code flaw.
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= 6.0.0.272CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- High
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify if CA Internet Security Suite 2010 is installedCheck the Windows registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for entries containing 'CA Internet Security Suite' or inspect Add/Remove Programs. Alternatively, check for the presence of CA Technologies program files in Program Files.Affected if The software is present on the system.
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Verify the installed version numberLocate the version information in the registry key for the CA Internet Security Suite installation, or right-click the main executable (typically 'caiss.exe' or 'CASecuritySuite.exe') in Program Files and view Properties > Details.Affected if The version equals exactly 6.0.0.272.
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Confirm the kernel-mode hook driver is loadedOpen Command Prompt and run 'sc query cce.sys' or check Device Manager for hidden devices to see if the CA Common Engine driver (cce.sys) responsible for hook-based filtering is present and running.Affected if The cce.sys kernel driver is loaded and active.
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Check if real-time protection/scanning is enabledOpen the CA Internet Security Suite interface and navigate to the protection settings to verify if the antivirus scanning engine and behavior monitoring are turned on.Affected if Real-time file and memory scanning is enabled.
The system is affected if CA Internet Security Suite 2010 version 6.0.0.272 is installed with its kernel-mode hook driver (cce.sys) loaded and real-time protection enabled, allowing a local attacker to exploit the race condition during hook handler execution.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataIf the product is still in use, upgrade to a patched version or migrate to a supported security solution, as CA Internet Security Suite 2010 is obsolete. For defense-in-depth, disable or restrict unnecessary hook-based filtering and ensure least-privilege access controls.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2010-5156 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2010-5156 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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