CVE-2004-2165 in Lords Of The Realm Iii
Summary
by MITRE
Lords of the Realm III 1.01 and earlier, when in the lobby stage, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash from unallocated memory write) via a long user nickname.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/23/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2004-2165 represents a classic buffer overflow condition that affects the multiplayer lobby functionality of Lords of the Realm III version 1.01 and earlier. This issue manifests specifically during the lobby stage of the game when players attempt to join multiplayer sessions, creating a critical security flaw that can be exploited remotely by malicious actors. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation mechanisms within the game's network communication protocols, particularly in how the software handles user nickname data submitted during lobby initialization.
The technical flaw involves an uncontrolled buffer write operation that occurs when the game processes user nicknames exceeding predetermined length limits. This condition falls under the CWE-121 CWE category for stack-based buffer overflow, though in this case the overflow manifests as an unallocated memory write rather than traditional stack corruption. When a remote attacker submits a specially crafted nickname containing excessive data, the game's memory management routines fail to properly validate the input length, resulting in writes to memory locations outside the allocated buffer boundaries. This memory corruption directly leads to application instability and subsequent crash conditions that terminate the game process.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service, as it provides attackers with a reliable method to disrupt multiplayer gaming sessions and potentially affect other players in the same lobby. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it can be exploited without requiring any authentication or privileged access, making it a significant threat to online gaming communities. From an attack perspective, this flaw aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks, where adversaries leverage application-level vulnerabilities to compromise system availability. The vulnerability affects the game's multiplayer experience and could be exploited to create a persistent disruption in gaming services, potentially impacting player retention and community engagement.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing proper input validation mechanisms within the game's networking code, including length restrictions on user nicknames and robust buffer management practices. The most effective remediation involves updating the game client to properly validate and truncate user input before processing, ensuring that nickname lengths remain within safe operational limits. Additionally, network-level protections such as rate limiting and input filtering can help prevent exploitation attempts, though the fundamental fix requires addressing the underlying buffer management issue in the game's source code. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper memory management practices in networked applications and highlights the need for comprehensive security testing of multiplayer gaming environments to prevent similar issues in future releases.