Use-after-free vulnerability in the CRecordInstance::TransferToDestination function in mshtml.dll in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01, 6, 6 SP1, and 7 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via DSO bindings involving (1) an XML Island, (2) XML DSOs, or (3) Tabular Data Control (TDC) in a crafted HTML or XML document, as demonstrated by nested SPAN or MARQUEE elements, and exploited in the wild in December 2008.
CVE-2008-4844
This CVE was only ever scored under CVSS v2.0. NVD CVSS v2.0 base 9.3 — v2 rates that HIGH (v2 bands: LOW 0.0–3.9 / MEDIUM 4.0–6.9 / HIGH 7.0–10.0; v2 has no CRITICAL band). Vector AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C. CVSS v2 is an older, coarser metric than v3.1/v4.0 (no Scope, no User Interaction, no Attack Requirements), so it is not directly comparable to a v3 or v4 score. NVD has never re-scored this record under v3. EPSS predicts 66.5% exploitation probability in the next 30 days, which is reflected in EG Risk but does not lift the v2 base. Confidence: LOW.
- High exploitation likelihood — EPSS 67%
- Public exploit code is available (Metasploit, Exploit-DB (verified), epss top5pct, epss high, public exploit)
No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.
- CVSS v2.0 (legacy)
- 9.3HIGHNVD never assigned a CVSS v3 rating to this CVE
- EG Score
- 9.3(low)
- EG Risk
- 73(Track)EG Risk 73/100SSVC: Track
EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).
How it’s computedSeverity93% × 45%Exploitation67% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS PROB
- 67%
- EPSS %ILE
- 99%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
December 11, 2008
Last Modified
April 23, 2026
References (42)
- secure@microsofthttp://blogs.msdn.com/sdl/archive/2008/12/18/ms08-078-and-the-sdl.aspx
- secure@microsofthttp://code.google.com/p/inception-h2hc/
- secure@microsofthttp://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=5458
- secure@microsofthttp://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=123015308222620&w=2
- secure@microsofthttp://secunia.com/advisories/33089
- secure@microsofthttp://www.avertlabs.com/research/blog/index.php/2008/12/09/yet-another-unpatched-drive-by-exploit-found-on-the-web/
- secure@microsofthttp://www.breakingpointsystems.com/community/blog/patch-tuesdays-and-drive-by-sundays
- secure@microsofthttp://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/493881
- secure@microsofthttp://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/961051.mspx
- secure@microsofthttp://www.scanw.com/blog/archives/303
- secure@microsofthttp://www.securityfocus.com/bid/32721
- secure@microsofthttp://www.securitytracker.com/id?1021381
- secure@microsofthttp://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA08-344A.html
- secure@microsofthttp://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA08-352A.html
- secure@microsofthttp://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2008/3391
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 0× in last 7d / 5× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
- 2026-08-15 01:24 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-08 16:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-07 16:21 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-06 13:41 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 01:25 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-26 13:36 UTCEG score recompute▲ 9.30
- 2026-07-25 14:12 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-24 14:12 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 14:14 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 00:57 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-23 00:35 UTCEG score recompute▼ 6.00
- 2026-07-23 00:02 UTCEG score recompute▲ 6.00
- 2026-07-22 21:40 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-20 17:03 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-16 16:58 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 16:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 16:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 01:55 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-13 06:07 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-11 08:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-11 08:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-09 19:04 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 16:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-05 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-05 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-02 14:00 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-01 15:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-01 15:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-30 23:19 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-29 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-29 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-28 04:52 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-25 13:46 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-25 13:46 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 21:29 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 21:29 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-18 17:49 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-18 17:49 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-17 17:49 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-17 17:49 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-16 17:49 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-16 17:49 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-15 17:44 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-13 22:57 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-12 23:08 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-12 23:08 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-11 13:56 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-10 22:14 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-05 22:44 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-05 22:44 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-04 13:09 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-04 13:09 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-02 20:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-02 20:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-30 19:11 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-05-30 19:11 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-05-29 13:40 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-27 13:38 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-27 13:37 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-22 21:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-22 21:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-20 22:37 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-20 22:36 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-18 21:29 UTCEPSS rescore
Publicly available exploits
(4 references)Working exploit code is in the public domain (1 Metasploit module) (3 Exploit-DB entries). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- Exploit-DBEDB-16583✓ verifiedFirst seen Sep 20, 2010
Microsoft Internet Explorer - Data Binding Memory Corruption (MS08-078) (Metasploit)
Open source ↗ - Exploit-DBEDB-7410✓ verifiedFirst seen Dec 10, 2008
Microsoft Internet Explorer (Windows Vista) - XML Parsing Buffer Overflow
Open source ↗ - Exploit-DBEDB-7403✓ verifiedFirst seen Dec 10, 2008
Microsoft Internet Explorer - XML Parsing Remote Buffer Overflow
Open source ↗ - Metasploitexploit/windows/browser/ms08_078_xml_corruption✓ verifiedFirst seen Dec 7, 2008
MS08-078 Microsoft Internet Explorer Data Binding Memory Corruption
Open source ↗
Frequently asked(4)
What is CVE-2008-4844?
When was CVE-2008-4844 disclosed?
Is CVE-2008-4844 actively exploited?
How do I remediate CVE-2008-4844?
Dependency Blast Radius
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