CVE-2000-1179 in 650-T ISDN Router
Summary
by MITRE
Netopia ISDN Router 650-ST before 4.3.5 allows remote attackers to read system logs without authentication by directly connecting to the login screen and typing certain control characters.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/07/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2000-1179 affects Netopia ISDN Router 650-ST devices running firmware versions prior to 4.3.5, representing a critical authentication bypass flaw that exposes system logs to unauthorized remote access. This vulnerability resides in the router's authentication mechanism and directly impacts the device's security posture by allowing attackers to bypass the standard login process and gain access to sensitive system information. The flaw specifically targets the router's login screen implementation, where certain control characters can be exploited to directly access system logs without proper authentication credentials. This represents a fundamental failure in the device's access control design and demonstrates poor security implementation in network infrastructure equipment from the early 2000s era.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through direct connection to the router's login interface where attackers can input specific control characters that trigger an authentication bypass mechanism. This allows unauthorized users to access system logs that typically would require valid credentials to retrieve, effectively providing attackers with access to sensitive operational data including user activities, system events, configuration changes, and potentially network traffic information. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-287, which deals with improper authentication issues, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078.1.001 for valid accounts and T1005 for data from local system. The implementation flaw suggests that the device's input validation and authentication flow handling contains a critical design weakness where control character sequences are not properly sanitized or handled, allowing unauthorized access to system resources that should remain protected.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as system logs typically contain sensitive information about network operations, user activities, and device configurations that could be leveraged for further attacks. Attackers could potentially use the logged information to identify network topology, user patterns, system vulnerabilities, or even extract credentials if they are logged within the system files. The exposure of system logs creates opportunities for advanced persistent threats to gather intelligence about the network environment and plan more sophisticated attacks. This vulnerability particularly affects network infrastructure devices that are often deployed in environments where physical access might be limited, making remote exploitation more feasible and dangerous. The implications for organizations using these devices include potential compliance violations under regulations such as pci dss, hipaa, and gdpr due to unauthorized access to system logs containing sensitive operational data.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate firmware updates to version 4.3.5 or later, which would contain the necessary authentication fixes to prevent control character exploitation. Organizations should also implement network segmentation to limit access to critical infrastructure devices, enforce strong access controls through network access control lists, and regularly audit device configurations to identify similar vulnerabilities. Additional security measures include disabling unnecessary services, implementing proper network monitoring to detect unauthorized access attempts, and establishing incident response procedures for handling potential exploitation of such vulnerabilities. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation and authentication design in network infrastructure devices, highlighting that even basic security controls like authentication mechanisms can contain critical flaws when not properly implemented and tested against known attack patterns. Organizations should also consider implementing network intrusion detection systems to monitor for exploitation attempts and maintain up-to-date vulnerability assessments to identify similar issues in other network infrastructure components.