CVE-2002-1265 in IRIX
Summary
by MITRE
The Sun RPC functionality in multiple libc implementations does not provide a time-out mechanism when reading data from TCP connections, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (hang).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/15/2024
The vulnerability described in CVE-2002-1265 represents a critical flaw in the Sun Remote Procedure Call implementation within various libc (C library) implementations. This issue affects systems that rely on TCP-based RPC communications and demonstrates a fundamental design oversight in network protocol handling. The vulnerability specifically targets the absence of time-out mechanisms during data reading operations on TCP connections, creating a potential attack vector that can be exploited to disrupt system availability.
The technical flaw manifests when the Sun RPC functionality fails to implement proper time-out handling for TCP socket operations. When a remote attacker establishes a TCP connection and sends data to a vulnerable system, the system's RPC implementation will indefinitely wait for additional data without any time-out mechanism to interrupt the operation. This behavior causes the system to hang or become unresponsive, effectively creating a denial of service condition that can be triggered remotely without requiring authentication or special privileges. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects multiple libc implementations, meaning that a wide range of Unix and Unix-like systems could be impacted.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a significant risk to system availability and network services. The denial of service attack can render network services completely inaccessible to legitimate users, potentially causing business disruption and service outages. The attack is relatively simple to execute since it requires only basic network connectivity to establish a TCP connection and send data, making it accessible to attackers with minimal technical expertise. Systems running services that depend on RPC functionality, such as NFS (Network File System) or other network-based applications, become particularly vulnerable to this type of attack.
The impact of this vulnerability aligns with several ATT&CK tactics including privilege escalation and denial of service, as attackers can leverage this weakness to disrupt services without needing elevated privileges. From a CWE perspective, this vulnerability maps to CWE-400, which addresses unspecified other weaknesses related to resource management and time-out handling. The lack of proper time-out mechanisms represents a classic resource exhaustion vulnerability where system resources become tied up indefinitely, preventing legitimate operations from completing. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including updating their libc implementations to versions that include proper time-out handling, configuring firewalls to limit connection timeouts, and monitoring for unusual connection patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts.
The remediation approach involves updating affected systems with patched libc implementations that include proper time-out mechanisms for TCP operations. System administrators should also consider implementing network-level protections such as connection tracking with time-out policies and monitoring for abnormal RPC behavior. Additionally, organizations should conduct vulnerability assessments to identify all systems running vulnerable RPC services and ensure that appropriate network segmentation is in place to limit the potential impact of such attacks. The vulnerability highlights the importance of robust network protocol implementation and proper resource management in preventing denial of service conditions that can compromise system availability and service integrity.