From: Tony Williams 

I take a public API to mean any entry point to a library function (static,
shared, DLL or kernel call) which can be used directly by a third party
program. I think that's a pretty standard definition.

A private subroutine in a program could be vulnerable in its own right or
because it uses a public function which has a weakness. By the same token,
several API functions could be vulnerable because they also use the same
exploitable API function. That includes third-party DLLs (say) which use
the API in their own published API.

There are also undocumented API calls which, although accessible to
third-party programs, aren't officially supported. There was a flap at one
time about Microsoft using these to give its own apps an unfair advantage,
but that's a different thread.

--
Tony

Geo. wrote:
> Ok I understand somewhat but is a public API the same thing as printf() or
> is it more like a subroutine in a program where printf() would be part of
> that subroutine?
>
> Geo.
>
> "Tony Williams"  wrote in message
> news:3de94098{at}w3.nls.net...
>
>>We don't seem to be communicating too well I'll admit. Try this. Given a
>>known vulnerability in an app it's easy to get a stack trace of where
>>the program is when the exploit happens. From this you can find out
>>which, if any, public API function is being exploited. If the exploit
>>doesn't involve a public API then it's specific to that app.

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