CVE-2002-1883 in Qt Assistant
Summary
by MITRE
Trolltech Qt Assistant 1.0 in Trolltech Qt 3.0.3, when loaded from the Designer, opens port 7358 for interprocess communication, which allows remote attackers to open arbitrary HTML pages and cause a denial of service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/19/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2002-1883 resides within Trolltech Qt Assistant version 1.0, which is part of the Qt 3.0.3 software suite. This flaw manifests when the Qt Assistant component is invoked through the Qt Designer environment, creating an unintended network exposure that compromises system security and availability. The vulnerability represents a classic example of insecure network service configuration where a legitimate application component inadvertently exposes a communication port without proper access controls or security restrictions. The affected software opens TCP port 7358 to facilitate interprocess communication between the Qt Assistant and other Qt components, but this port remains accessible to remote attackers without authentication mechanisms.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the Qt Assistant's design decision to establish a network listening service on port 7358 without adequate security considerations. This port serves as a communication channel for the assistant component to interact with other Qt applications and tools, particularly when integrated within the Qt Designer environment. Remote attackers can exploit this by sending specially crafted network requests to the open port, which allows them to instruct the Qt Assistant to load arbitrary HTML content. The flaw does not require authentication or elevated privileges to exploit, making it particularly dangerous as it can be leveraged by any remote attacker with network access to the affected system. This represents a violation of the principle of least privilege and demonstrates poor secure coding practices where network services are exposed without proper access controls.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure to encompass potential denial of service conditions and arbitrary code execution risks. When an attacker successfully exploits this vulnerability, they can force the Qt Assistant to open arbitrary HTML pages, which may contain malicious content such as embedded scripts or links to compromised resources. This capability allows attackers to potentially redirect users to malicious websites, inject harmful content into the assistant interface, or cause the application to consume excessive system resources through the loading of resource-intensive HTML content. The denial of service component of this vulnerability occurs when the assistant becomes unresponsive or crashes due to processing malicious HTML content, effectively preventing legitimate users from accessing the assistant functionality. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-668, which describes "Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere" where a resource is made accessible to entities that should not have access, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203, "Exploitation for Client Execution" where attackers leverage vulnerabilities to execute malicious code on target systems.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate network-level protections and application configuration changes. Organizations should implement firewall rules to block incoming connections on port 7358 from unauthorized networks, effectively preventing remote exploitation of this vulnerability. The most effective long-term solution involves updating to newer versions of the Qt framework where this vulnerability has been addressed through proper access controls and secure configuration of interprocess communication channels. System administrators should also consider disabling the Qt Assistant component when not actively needed, particularly in environments where the Designer is used for development purposes. Additionally, network monitoring should be implemented to detect unusual traffic patterns on port 7358, which could indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper secure coding practices and the need for thorough security reviews of network services, particularly those that are automatically enabled without explicit user configuration or consent. Regular security assessments of development environments should include checks for exposed network ports and services that may present similar vulnerabilities.