CVE-2001-0603 in Domino
Summary
by MITRE
Lotus Domino R5 prior to 5.0.7 allows a remote attacker to create a denial of service via repeatedly sending large (> 10Kb) amounts of data to the DIIOP - CORBA service on TCP port 63148.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/27/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2001-0603 affects IBM Lotus Domino R5 versions prior to 5.0.7, specifically targeting the DIIOP - CORBA service that operates on TCP port 63148. This represents a classic denial of service flaw that exploits the service's inability to properly handle excessive data inputs, creating a condition where legitimate users cannot access the system's resources. The vulnerability exists within the communication protocols that enable distributed inter-ORB protocol operations, making it particularly dangerous in networked environments where such services are exposed to external traffic.
The technical flaw manifests when an attacker sends large data payloads exceeding 10 kilobytes to the DIIOP service, causing the system to become unresponsive or crash. This occurs due to insufficient input validation and memory management within the CORBA implementation, which fails to properly handle oversized data transfers that would normally be rejected or processed in a controlled manner. The vulnerability stems from inadequate buffer management and lacks proper bounds checking mechanisms, allowing the service to consume excessive system resources or enter an unstable state when processing these malformed inputs. This type of flaw aligns with CWE-122, which addresses buffer overflow conditions in heap-based memory management, and CWE-770, which covers allocation of resources without proper limits.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption, as it can effectively render the entire Domino server unusable for legitimate business operations. Organizations relying on Lotus Domino for email services, collaboration platforms, or business applications face significant downtime risks when this vulnerability is exploited. The attack can be executed remotely without requiring authentication, making it particularly dangerous as any external party can potentially exploit the weakness. Network administrators must consider the cascading effects of such an attack, as it could impact not only the targeted Domino server but also dependent systems that rely on its services, potentially causing broader enterprise disruptions.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate patch deployment to versions 5.0.7 or later where the vulnerability has been addressed through improved input validation and resource management. Organizations should implement network-level protections such as firewall rules to restrict access to TCP port 63148, particularly when the DIIOP service is not required for business operations. Network segmentation and monitoring solutions can help detect anomalous data transfer patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, implementing rate limiting and connection throttling mechanisms can prevent the service from being overwhelmed by large data transfers, while regular security assessments should verify that the CORBA service configuration follows security best practices and that unnecessary services are disabled to reduce the attack surface. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation and resource management in distributed systems, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks and emphasizing the need for robust service hardening practices.