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Comment by pksadiq | Hacker News Reader

Hm.. So a simple javascript that loads the image from specified path would hang M$ windows? Applicable to html emails too in some mail client?

We need to find more astonishing ways to hang the windows. Cement and sand should not be the only option.

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browsers implement cross domain origin policy to prevent js from accessing the local filesystem. Or did I misunderstand the nature of the Windows bug. It must be trying to read from file:// right?

<img src="c://badfilename"> is enough. You don't need JavaScript.

is this true for even evergreen browsers? Is this true for pages that's hosted in non localhost domain or drag n' dropped into browser from the file explorer? (file:// protocol)

But you do need the file to be stored locally. I don't think this attack is very serious. Downloading and opening files is already a risky maneuver.

My understanding of the article is there isn't a "local file" that matches the name, but the very act of checking for that filename causes the hang.

Happy to be corrected.

heaven praise the same origin policy

Resources/frames/XHRs/etc from 'file://' might be blocked, but what about top-level redirects?

At the very least, user-initiated top-level navigations should bypass any policies. If you're out to cause mischief, you could just link to the dodgy path on forums/comments/etc – there'll always be people out there who are careless and/or clueless enough to click on it.

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