CVE-2001-1038 in SN 5420 Storage Router
Summary
by MITRE
Cisco SN 5420 Storage Router 1.1(3) and earlier allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (reboot) via a series of connections to TCP port 8023.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/29/2019
The Cisco SN 5420 Storage Router represents a critical network infrastructure device that serves as a storage area network gateway, facilitating communication between storage devices and network clients. This particular vulnerability affects versions 1.1(3) and earlier of the router software, which operates as a network appliance designed to manage and route storage traffic. The device functions as a bridge between different storage protocols and network environments, making it a potential target for attackers seeking to disrupt storage operations. The vulnerability specifically manifests through a flaw in the device's handling of TCP connections on port 8023, which is used for management and administrative communications.
The technical flaw involves an insufficient input validation mechanism within the router's TCP connection handling process. When remote attackers establish a series of connections to TCP port 8023, the device fails to properly validate or limit the connection sequences, leading to a buffer overflow or resource exhaustion condition. This vulnerability stems from improper state management and lacks adequate connection rate limiting or connection sequence validation. The flaw allows an attacker to exploit the device's protocol handling by sending multiple connection requests in a specific pattern that causes the router to consume excessive system resources or trigger an internal error condition. According to CWE classification, this represents a weakness in resource management where the system fails to properly handle resource allocation and deallocation, specifically categorized under CWE-129 Input Validation and Output Encoding.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise entire storage network operations. A successful attack can force the router to reboot automatically, causing temporary loss of connectivity between storage devices and network clients. This denial of service condition can persist until manual intervention occurs, potentially leading to extended downtime for storage operations. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on continuous storage network availability, as the automatic reboot can disrupt critical business processes, data backup operations, and application services that depend on storage connectivity. The attack requires minimal sophistication and can be executed remotely, making it particularly dangerous as it allows attackers to exploit the device from outside the network perimeter.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate software updates and network segmentation measures. Organizations must upgrade to Cisco IOS version 1.1(4) or later, which includes patches addressing this specific vulnerability. Network administrators should implement firewall rules to restrict access to TCP port 8023 from unauthorized sources, particularly blocking external connections to this management port. The implementation of rate limiting and connection monitoring on the affected port can help detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Additionally, organizations should consider network segmentation to isolate storage routers from general network traffic, reducing the attack surface. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1499.004 Network Denial of Service, where adversaries leverage device vulnerabilities to cause service disruption. Regular vulnerability assessments and network monitoring should be implemented to detect potential exploitation attempts and maintain overall network security posture. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of secure configuration management and regular patch deployment processes to prevent similar issues in other network infrastructure components.