CVE-2002-1018 in Content Server
Summary
by MITRE
The library feature for Adobe Content Server 3.0 does not verify if a customer has already checked out an eBook, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (resource exhaustion) by checking out the same book multiple times.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/18/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2002-1018 resides within Adobe Content Server 3.0's library management functionality, representing a critical flaw in resource allocation and access control mechanisms. This issue stems from inadequate validation procedures that fail to properly track and verify customer checkout status for digital content items. The absence of proper duplicate checkout detection creates an exploitable condition where malicious actors can manipulate the system's resource management processes through repeated checkout operations. The vulnerability specifically targets the server's inability to recognize when a customer has already acquired a particular eBook, leading to a cascading effect of resource consumption that ultimately compromises system availability and performance.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability manifests as a failure in the server's state management and session tracking capabilities. The system lacks proper validation logic to cross-reference existing checkout records against new checkout requests, creating a scenario where multiple concurrent checkout operations can be processed for the same digital asset. This flaw operates at the application layer and represents a classic case of insufficient input validation and access control enforcement. The vulnerability directly maps to CWE-362, which describes concurrent execution access control flaws, and CWE-400, which addresses resource exhaustion conditions. The system's architecture fails to implement proper locking mechanisms or state tracking that would prevent multiple checkout operations from being simultaneously processed for identical content items, creating a pathway for attackers to exploit the underlying resource management architecture.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service conditions to encompass broader system reliability and user experience degradation. Remote attackers can systematically consume server resources by repeatedly checking out the same eBook, leading to memory exhaustion, database connection depletion, and overall system performance degradation that affects legitimate users. This resource exhaustion attack can effectively prevent other customers from accessing their purchased content, creating a cascading denial of service condition that impacts the entire digital content delivery ecosystem. The vulnerability also poses risks to business continuity and customer satisfaction, as legitimate checkout operations may be blocked or delayed due to resource constraints imposed by the malicious exploitation. Additionally, the attack vector enables potential scalability issues where the server's capacity to handle legitimate requests diminishes significantly under sustained exploitation.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2002-1018 should focus on implementing robust state validation mechanisms and access control enforcement within the Adobe Content Server environment. Organizations should deploy proper session tracking and duplicate checkout detection capabilities that maintain accurate records of active customer checkout states for each digital asset. The implementation of database-level constraints and application-layer validation checks can prevent multiple concurrent checkout operations for identical content items. Security measures should include rate limiting mechanisms to restrict the number of checkout operations per customer within defined time periods, along with enhanced logging and monitoring capabilities to detect anomalous checkout patterns. The solution aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers resource exhaustion attacks, and requires comprehensive system hardening that addresses both the immediate vulnerability and broader access control weaknesses in the digital rights management infrastructure. Updates to the server software and implementation of proper input validation procedures should be prioritized to address this vulnerability at the source.