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CVE-2010-1885· NVD / CVE Program· CNA microsoft

The MPC::HexToNum function in helpctr.exe in Microsoft Windows Help and Support Center in Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 does not proper

The MPC::HexToNum function in helpctr.exe in Microsoft Windows Help and Support Center in Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 does not properly handle malformed escape sequences, which allows remote attackers to bypass the trusted documents whitelist (fromHCP option) and execute arbitrary commands via a crafted hcp:// URL, aka "Help Center URL Validation Vulnerability."

CriticalCVSS 9.3 · v2.0—Weaponized No fix recorded
Published
Jun 15, 2010
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
71.2% · 99th percentile
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Report tools

JSON

Action score

58

Plan

Add it to your regular patch cycle.

CVSS
37 / 40 · 9.3 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
21 / 30 · 71.2%

Affected systems

VendorProduct
microsoftwindows 2003 server
microsoftwindows server 2003
microsoftwindows xp

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • microsoft windows server 2003all versions

Same product

microsoft: all records

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    58Plan

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

  • Metasploit module ×1
  • Exploit-DB entry ×2

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Exploit-DB entryremote2010-09-20
Exploit-DB entryremote2010-06-10
Metasploit moduleexploit/windows/browser/ms10_042_helpctr_xss_cmd_execMicrosoft Help Center XSS and Command Executionexploit2010-06-09

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Metasploit-6 d
  2. First PoC-5 d
  3. Published
  4. TodaySep 30, 2026+5951 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

    If successful

    Confidentiality
    C · data can be read
    Integrity
    C · data or configuration can be modified
    Availability
    C · the service can be disrupted
    Attack complexity
    M
    Confidentiality impact
    C
    Integrity impact
    C
    Availability impact
    C

    Weakness class (CWE)

    CWE-78 · Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')

    CVSS vector

    AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

    nvd-primary

    Root cause

    User input is inserted as text into a shell command. The shell may interpret special characters in the input as part of the command.

    The bug in code

    The whole CWE-78 class

    A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

    Vulnerable

    ts
    const host = req.body.host;exec("ping -c 1 " + host, onResult);

    Fixed

    ts
    const host = req.body.host;if (!/^[a-z0-9.-]{1,253}$/i.test(host)) return res.sendStatus(400);execFile("ping", ["-c", "1", host], onResult);

    Attack context

    MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

    ATT&CK techniques

    —

    Noroxi analysis

    No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

    We don't hand-write analysis for all 385,000+ vulnerabilities; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.

    We use this product, ask for help

    Change log

    No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

    References

    Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

    All records