CVE-2004-0095 in WebShield
Summary
by MITRE
McAfee ePolicy Orchestrator agent allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption and crash) and possibly execute arbitrary code via an HTTP POST request with an invalid Content-Length value, possibly triggering a buffer overflow.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/28/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2004-0095 affects the McAfee ePolicy Orchestrator agent, a centralized security management platform widely deployed in enterprise environments for policy enforcement and security automation. This vulnerability represents a critical flaw in the agent's HTTP request processing mechanism that can be exploited remotely by attackers to compromise system stability and potentially gain unauthorized code execution privileges. The issue stems from inadequate input validation within the agent's web server component that handles HTTP POST requests from remote clients.
The technical flaw manifests when the McAfee ePolicy Orchestrator agent receives an HTTP POST request containing an invalid Content-Length header value. This malformed header triggers a buffer overflow condition within the agent's memory management routines, causing the system to consume excessive memory resources and eventually crash. The buffer overflow vulnerability occurs due to improper bounds checking when processing the Content-Length value, allowing attackers to manipulate memory allocation patterns and potentially overwrite adjacent memory segments. This type of vulnerability is classified as a classic buffer overflow under CWE-121, which falls under the broader category of memory safety issues in software development.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service conditions, as it provides attackers with potential pathways for arbitrary code execution within the compromised system. When the buffer overflow occurs, it can lead to unpredictable behavior including application crashes, system instability, and in some cases, complete system compromise. The vulnerability affects the agent's ability to maintain consistent service availability, which is critical in enterprise security environments where the ePolicy Orchestrator agent serves as a central point for security policy enforcement. Organizations relying on this platform for automated security management may experience significant operational disruptions when this vulnerability is exploited.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2004-0095 should prioritize immediate patch deployment from McAfee, as this vulnerability was addressed through official security updates released in response to the identified flaw. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be implemented to restrict access to the agent's HTTP ports, limiting exposure to unauthorized attackers. Additionally, implementing intrusion detection systems with signature-based detection for malformed HTTP requests can help identify exploitation attempts. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1210, which covers exploitation of remote services through buffer overflow conditions, making it a target for both automated scanning tools and sophisticated attackers seeking to compromise enterprise security infrastructure. Regular security assessments and network monitoring should be conducted to ensure the vulnerability remains properly mitigated and to detect any potential variants or related exploitation attempts that may emerge over time.