Software Engineering Institute

InstallShield InstallFromTheWeb is a web-based software installation product for Microsoft Windows systems. InstallFromTheWeb is available as an ActiveX control for Internet Explorer and also as a Netscape-style plug-in for other web browsers. The ActiveX control is provided by the file iftw.dll, and the plug-in is provided by the file npiftw32.dll. InstallFromTheWeb contains multiple buffer overflows.

Note that InstallShield has been acquired by Macrovision. The InstallFromTheWeb product is no longer supported by Macrovision.

By convincing a user to view a specially crafted HTML document (e.g., a web page or an HTML email message or attachment), an attacker may be able to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the user. The attacker could also cause the web browser to crash.

We are currently unaware of a practical solution to this problem.

Disable the InstallFromTheWeb ActiveX control in Internet Explorer

The vulnerable ActiveX control can be disabled in Internet Explorer by setting the kill bit for the following CLSID:

{4E330863-6A11-11D0-BFD8-006097237877}
More information about how to set the kill bit is available in Microsoft Support Document 240797. Alternatively, the following text can be saved as a .REG file and imported to set the kill bit for this control:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ActiveX Compatibility\{4E330863-6A11-11D0-BFD8-006097237877}]
"Compatibility Flags"=dword:00000400
Remove the InstallFromTheWeb plug-in

The vulnerable plug-in can be removed by deleting the npiftw32.dll file.

Disable ActiveX

Disabling ActiveX controls in the Internet Zone (or any zone used by an attacker) appears to prevent exploitation of this and other ActiveX vulnerabilities. Instructions for disabling ActiveX in the Internet Zone can be found in the "Securing Your Web Browser" document.