CVE-2001-1310 in Secureway Directory
Summary
by MITRE
IBM SecureWay 3.2.1 allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) and possibly execute arbitrary code, via invalid encodings for the L field of a BER encoding, as demonstrated by the PROTOS LDAPv3 test suite.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/23/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2001-1310 affects IBM SecureWay 3.2.1, a directory services implementation that employs the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol version 3. This flaw represents a critical security issue within the application's handling of binary encoded data structures, specifically targeting the Basic Encoding Rules (BER) format used extensively in LDAP communications. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation mechanisms that fail to properly process malformed data sequences, creating potential entry points for malicious actors to exploit the system's parsing logic.
The technical exploitation occurs through the manipulation of the L field within BER encoding structures, which specifies the length of subsequent data elements. When IBM SecureWay encounters invalid or malformed length encodings during LDAP protocol processing, the application's internal parsers fail to handle these exceptional conditions gracefully, resulting in unpredictable behavior that can manifest as system crashes or potentially allow arbitrary code execution. This represents a classic buffer over-read or parsing error vulnerability where the application does not adequately validate the integrity of encoded data before attempting to process it, making it susceptible to malformed input that could trigger memory corruption or execution flow manipulation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service conditions, as the potential for arbitrary code execution creates a significant risk for system compromise. Remote attackers can leverage this weakness to disrupt directory services availability, potentially gaining unauthorized access to sensitive directory information or using the compromised system as a foothold for further attacks within the network infrastructure. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects a core directory services implementation that many organizations rely upon for authentication and authorization functions, making it a prime target for attackers seeking to establish persistent access or disrupt critical business operations.
The flaw aligns with CWE-129, which addresses improper validation of length fields in input data processing, and demonstrates characteristics consistent with ATT&CK technique T1210, involving exploitation of remote services through malformed data inputs. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying available patches from IBM, deploying network segmentation to limit access to directory services, and implementing monitoring solutions to detect unusual LDAP traffic patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, the vulnerability highlights the importance of robust input validation and proper error handling in network services, particularly those handling standardized encoding formats like BER that are fundamental to many enterprise protocols.