CVE-2003-0738 in phpWebSite
Summary
by MITRE
The calendar module in phpWebSite 0.9.x and earlier allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a long year parameter.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/29/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2003-0738 represents a classic denial of service flaw within the calendar module of phpWebSite version 0.9.x and earlier releases. This issue stems from inadequate input validation mechanisms that fail to properly handle excessively long year parameter values. The flaw exists in the software's processing logic where user-supplied data is not adequately sanitized before being processed, creating an opportunity for malicious actors to exploit the system's response handling capabilities.
This vulnerability operates through a straightforward yet effective attack vector that leverages the calendar module's year parameter processing. When an attacker submits an unusually long year value, the system's internal handling routines become overwhelmed or encounter unexpected behavior that leads to system instability. The flaw demonstrates characteristics consistent with CWE-129 Input Validation and CWE-400 Uncontrolled Resource Consumption, as the system fails to validate input boundaries and subsequently consumes excessive resources during processing. The calendar module's implementation appears to lack proper bounds checking on the year parameter, allowing arbitrary input lengths to be processed without adequate resource management or validation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise system availability and stability. Remote attackers can exploit this weakness to crash the web application or cause it to become unresponsive, effectively denying legitimate users access to calendar functionality and potentially broader system services. The attack requires minimal technical expertise and can be executed through simple HTTP requests, making it particularly dangerous in environments where phpWebSite serves critical business functions. From an attack framework perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for Network Denial of Service, as it specifically targets service availability through resource exhaustion or system instability.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2003-0738 should focus on immediate input validation and boundary checking implementation within the calendar module. System administrators should prioritize upgrading to phpWebSite versions that address this vulnerability, as the original affected versions represent outdated software with known security weaknesses. Additionally, implementing proper input sanitization measures including length validation, parameter normalization, and resource consumption monitoring can help prevent exploitation attempts. Network-level protections such as rate limiting and intrusion detection systems can provide additional defense-in-depth measures to detect and prevent exploitation attempts targeting this specific vulnerability. Organizations should also consider implementing proper error handling and graceful degradation mechanisms to ensure that malformed input does not lead to complete system failure.