CVE-2002-1029 in Res Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Res Manager in Worldspan for Windows Gateway 4.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a malformed request to TCP port 17990.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/13/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2002-1029 resides within the Resource Manager component of Worldspan for Windows Gateway version 4.1, specifically targeting TCP port 17990 which serves as the communication endpoint for resource management operations. This flaw represents a classic buffer overflow condition that occurs when the system fails to properly validate incoming data structures before processing them, leading to a situation where malformed input can trigger unexpected behavior in the application's memory management routines.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input sanitization within the resource manager's request handling mechanism. When a remote attacker sends a specially crafted malformed request to the designated TCP port 17990, the system processes this invalid data without proper boundary checking or validation protocols. This failure to validate input parameters creates an exploitable condition where the application's memory stack becomes corrupted, ultimately resulting in application termination and system crash. The vulnerability operates at the transport layer level, leveraging the TCP protocol's connection-oriented nature to establish communication with the targeted service.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a significant risk to organizations relying on Worldspan for Windows Gateway 4.1 for their resource management and gateway operations. The remote exploitation capability means that attackers can initiate denial of service attacks from any location without requiring physical access to the system or local network privileges. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption as the application crash can potentially affect downstream systems that depend on the gateway for resource allocation and management functions. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and represents a clear violation of secure coding practices that should prevent such memory corruption scenarios.
The attack vector for this vulnerability follows the ATT&CK framework's T1498 technique for network denial of service, where adversaries leverage application-level flaws to disrupt service availability. The minimal attack complexity and remote exploitability make this vulnerability particularly dangerous as it requires no specialized tools or deep system knowledge beyond basic network connectivity. Organizations utilizing this specific version of Worldspan for Windows Gateway are at risk of experiencing operational disruptions that could impact business continuity and resource allocation processes. The vulnerability's classification as a denial of service condition means that successful exploitation results in complete service unavailability until manual intervention or system restart occurs.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should include immediate implementation of network-level filtering to block traffic on TCP port 17990 from unauthorized sources, application-level patching to address the input validation deficiencies, and comprehensive monitoring of network traffic for suspicious activity patterns. System administrators should also implement redundant resource management services to minimize impact during potential exploitation events. The recommended approach involves applying vendor-specific patches or upgrading to newer versions of Worldspan for Windows Gateway that address this specific buffer overflow condition. Additionally, implementing intrusion detection systems with signature-based detection for this specific vulnerability pattern can provide early warning capabilities for potential exploitation attempts. Organizations should also consider network segmentation to isolate critical gateway services and reduce the attack surface available to potential adversaries.