CVE-2001-1261 in Argent Office
Summary
by MITRE
Avaya Argent Office 2.1 may allow remote attackers to change hold music by spoofing a legitimate server s response to a TFTP broadcast and providing an alternate HoldMusic file.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/08/2019
The vulnerability described in CVE-2001-1261 affects Avaya Argent Office 2.1 systems and represents a significant security flaw in the telephony infrastructure's handling of multimedia content delivery. This issue stems from the application's reliance on TFTP (Trivial File Transfer Protocol) for distributing hold music files to client devices, creating an attack surface where malicious actors can manipulate the content delivery process. The vulnerability specifically targets the authentication and validation mechanisms that should ensure only legitimate hold music files are distributed to network endpoints, leaving the system exposed to unauthorized modifications.
The technical flaw manifests through a man-in-the-middle attack vector where an attacker positioned on the network can intercept TFTP broadcast communications intended for legitimate servers. By spoofing the response from a trusted server, the attacker can substitute the legitimate hold music file with a malicious alternative, effectively compromising the audio content delivered to users during hold periods. This vulnerability operates at the network protocol level, exploiting weaknesses in how TFTP handles server identification and file validation without proper cryptographic verification or integrity checking mechanisms.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple audio manipulation, potentially enabling more sophisticated attack scenarios within enterprise telephony environments. Attackers could use this capability to deliver malicious audio content that might contain malicious payloads or to disrupt normal business communications by replacing legitimate hold music with inappropriate or disruptive content. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on Avaya Argent Office 2.1 for their communication infrastructure, potentially exposing sensitive business communications to surveillance or disruption, particularly in environments where hold music serves as part of the customer service experience.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-310 (Cryptographic Issues) and CWE-295 (Improper Certificate Validation) as it demonstrates inadequate security controls around file transfer protocols and content verification. The attack pattern corresponds to techniques documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under T1059 (Command and Scripting Interpreter) and T1566 (Phishing) where attackers exploit network protocols to deliver malicious content. Organizations should implement network segmentation to isolate telephony infrastructure, deploy TFTP server authentication mechanisms, and consider upgrading to more secure file transfer protocols that provide cryptographic integrity verification. Additionally, regular network monitoring for unauthorized TFTP activities and implementing proper access controls for network devices can help mitigate the risk associated with this vulnerability.