CVE-2003-1110 in sipc
Summary
by MITRE
The Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) implementation in Columbia SIP User Agent (sipc) 1.74 and other versions before sipc 2.0 build 2003-02-21 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service or execute arbitrary code via crafted INVITE messages, as demonstrated by the OUSPG PROTOS c07-sip test suite.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/19/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2003-1110 represents a critical security flaw in the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) implementation within the Columbia SIP User Agent (sipc) software version 1.74 and earlier releases. This issue affects the core communication protocol used for establishing, modifying, and terminating multimedia sessions in voice over IP environments, making it particularly dangerous in telephony and VoIP systems. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and memory handling within the SIP processing logic, creating exploitable conditions that can be leveraged by remote attackers to compromise system integrity and availability.
The technical flaw manifests through improper handling of malformed INVITE messages, which are fundamental components of SIP communications used to initiate multimedia sessions between parties. When the sipc application receives crafted INVITE messages containing malformed data structures or buffer overflow conditions, the application fails to properly validate or sanitize these inputs before processing them. This leads to memory corruption scenarios that can result in application crashes, system instability, or potentially allow remote code execution. The vulnerability specifically targets the protocol parsing mechanisms that handle session initiation requests, exploiting weaknesses in the software's defensive programming practices and input sanitization routines.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service conditions to encompass potential remote code execution capabilities that could allow attackers to gain unauthorized control over affected systems. In environments where sipc is deployed as a core component of VoIP infrastructure, attackers could leverage this vulnerability to disrupt communication services, potentially leading to complete system compromise. The vulnerability's exploitation through the OUSPG PROTOS c07-sip test suite demonstrates that it affects not just theoretical attack scenarios but has been validated through established testing frameworks, indicating real-world exploitability. This makes the vulnerability particularly concerning for organizations relying on SIP-based communication systems for critical business operations.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2003-1110 should prioritize immediate software updates to version 2.0 build 2003-02-21 or later, which contain the necessary patches to address the input validation and memory handling issues. Organizations should implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of affected systems to untrusted networks, while also deploying intrusion detection systems to monitor for suspicious SIP traffic patterns. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1203 for process injection and T1499 for network denial of service, highlighting the multi-faceted nature of potential exploitation. Additionally, organizations should conduct thorough security assessments of their VoIP infrastructure to identify any other potentially vulnerable SIP implementations and establish monitoring procedures to detect anomalous INVITE message patterns that could indicate attempted exploitation.