CVE-2000-0914 in OpenBSD
Summary
by MITRE
OpenBSD 2.6 and earlier allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service by flooding the server with ARP requests.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/05/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2000-0914 represents a significant denial of service weakness in OpenBSD versions 2.6 and earlier systems. This flaw specifically targets the Address Resolution Protocol implementation within the operating system's network stack, creating a condition where malicious actors can exploit the system's ARP handling mechanisms to disrupt normal network operations. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and processing limitations in how the OpenBSD kernel manages incoming ARP packets, particularly when dealing with high volumes of requests.
The technical nature of this vulnerability resides in the improper handling of ARP request flooding attacks, where an attacker can overwhelm the target system's ARP table processing capabilities. When the system receives a flood of ARP requests, the kernel's response mechanism becomes overwhelmed, leading to resource exhaustion and ultimately causing the system to become unresponsive. This represents a classic example of a resource exhaustion attack that leverages the fundamental network protocol handling mechanisms. The flaw operates at the network layer and demonstrates weaknesses in the kernel's packet processing and memory management functions, particularly in the context of ARP table maintenance and validation routines.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromising the entire network infrastructure that relies on the affected OpenBSD systems. When exploited successfully, the denial of service condition can render network services unavailable to legitimate users while the system struggles to process the excessive ARP traffic. This creates cascading effects that can impact not only the directly affected system but also dependent services and applications that rely on stable network connectivity. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because ARP is a fundamental protocol used for network communication, making it difficult to mitigate without potentially disrupting legitimate network operations.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily involve implementing network-level protections such as ARP request rate limiting and monitoring systems that can detect and block abnormal ARP traffic patterns. System administrators should consider deploying network intrusion detection systems that can identify ARP flooding attacks and automatically filter malicious traffic. Additionally, upgrading to OpenBSD versions that have addressed this vulnerability through kernel modifications and improved ARP handling mechanisms represents the most effective long-term solution. The implementation of proper network segmentation and access control measures can also help reduce the attack surface and limit the impact of such attacks. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which categorizes resource exhaustion vulnerabilities, and relates to ATT&CK technique T1498, which covers network denial of service attacks. Organizations should prioritize patch management and network monitoring to prevent exploitation of this type of vulnerability that can severely impact operational continuity and network availability.