CVE-2004-1792 in Switch Off
Summary
by MITRE
swnet.dll in YaSoft Switch Off 2.3 and earlier allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (infinite loop) via a long packet with two CRLF sequences to the service management port (TCP 8000).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/09/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2004-1792 affects YaSoft Switch Off version 2.3 and earlier, specifically targeting the swnet.dll component responsible for service management operations. This flaw represents a classic buffer overflow condition that manifests as an infinite loop during packet processing, creating a remote denial of service scenario. The vulnerability exploits a weakness in the network protocol handling mechanism where the system fails to properly validate input length and structure when processing incoming network traffic.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when an attacker sends a specially crafted packet containing two consecutive carriage return line feed sequences to the service management port operating on TCP port 8000. The swnet.dll module processes this malformed input without proper bounds checking, causing the application to enter an infinite loop during packet parsing operations. This condition effectively consumes system resources and prevents legitimate service requests from being processed, resulting in complete service unavailability for authorized users.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a significant risk to systems running YaSoft Switch Off software, particularly in environments where network services are critical to business operations. The remote nature of the attack means that adversaries can exploit this flaw from any location without requiring physical access or local credentials. The infinite loop condition creates a persistent denial of service state that can remain active until the affected service is manually restarted or the system is rebooted. Network administrators must consider that this vulnerability can be exploited by automated scanning tools, making it particularly dangerous in publicly accessible environments.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-129, which addresses improper validation of length of input buffers, and demonstrates characteristics consistent with CWE-770, concerning allocation of resources without limits or refresh. From an adversarial methodology standpoint, this vulnerability maps to ATT&CK technique T1499.004, specifically targeting network denial of service conditions through protocol manipulation. The flaw represents a fundamental lack of input sanitization and bounds checking in the network processing layer, indicating poor defensive programming practices that could potentially expose other similar vulnerabilities within the same codebase.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate patching of the YaSoft Switch Off software to version 2.4 or later, which contains the necessary code modifications to properly handle malformed input sequences. Network-level defenses can include implementing firewall rules to restrict access to TCP port 8000 from untrusted networks, while application-level protections should involve input validation mechanisms that limit packet size and structure before processing. System monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual CPU utilization patterns that may indicate the infinite loop condition, and automated alerting should be configured to notify administrators of potential exploitation attempts. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing network segmentation to limit the attack surface and reduce the impact of potential exploitation of this and similar vulnerabilities.