Microsoft Corp is attempting to plug a glaring hole in some versions of its Windows software, a weakness similar to those exploited by the devastating "Blaster" and "Sasser" attacks, a security expert said.
The patch, included in the company's monthly security bulletin, fixes a hole that could allow hackers to take complete control of computer systems, Microsoft said.
The problem is most serious on Windows 2000 systems, which could be accessed remotely through the operating system's "Plug and Play" hardware detection feature.
Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP systems with major security updates are less vulnerable, but still could be affected by certain remote users or those within local systems, the company said.
Marc Maiffret, chief hacking officer for eEye Digital Security, said on Tuesday that the hole resembled weaknesses that allowed the "Blaster" and "Sasser" worms to infect hundreds of thousands of computers worldwide.
"This is the type of vulnerability that's been exploited many times, and those two worms are the biggest examples because they had the biggest impact," Maiffret said.
Microsoft rated the patch "critical," its most serious designation, for Windows 2000. Two other upgrades in this month's bulletin also received the critical rating.
The flaw's less-serious effect on Windows XP systems suggests the company may have tried to address the problem, but left users with older software mostly unprotected, Maiffret said.
"This bug has existed in code that's over four years old," he said. "It can't be the first time that somebody finally looked at it."
Improved security can be expected on newer software, but Microsoft said a wider hole in Windows 2000 doesn't signal any effort to avoid fixing problems with the older software.
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