full-disclosure - RE: Publishing exploit code

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Date: Thu Jun 30 19:58:39 2005
From: Jim.Slora at phra.com (James C Slora Jr)
Subject: RE: Publishing exploit code - what is it good for

I have used public exploits for:

1. Verifying that the manufacturer's recommendations have been followed and
that they work. This was invaluable in the first few rounds of Microsoft RPC
patches a couple of years ago - some patches appeared to have installed
correctly but the machines were still vulnerable. They would not have been
patched successfully without exploit testing. Yes, the public exploit code
helped lead to widespread malware outbreaks, but those first few bugs were
so blatant that black hats could exploit them easily anyway and the
outbreaks still would have happened. Witness the continuing success of those
vectors.  The public exploits at least let us test to see if we were
prepared.

2. Developing methods to detect the exploits.

3. Understanding the exploitation process better. This way I can make the
hard sell on taking systems off line for patching with the appropriate
urgency.

4. Blocking appropriate attack vectors (and thinking of other potential
vectors), and making sure the attacks don't get through.