CVE-2004-2330 in ColdFusion
Summary
by MITRE
ColdFusion MX 6.1 and 6.1 J2EE allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service via an HTTP request containing a large number of form fields.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/28/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2004-2330 affects Adobe ColdFusion MX 6.1 and its J2EE edition, representing a significant denial of service weakness that can be exploited remotely by attackers. This flaw resides in the application server's handling of HTTP requests containing excessive form data, creating a condition where legitimate service availability is compromised through resource exhaustion. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and processing limitations within the ColdFusion request handling mechanism, particularly when processing multipart form data submissions that contain an unusually high number of fields.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which classifies it as a vulnerability related to uncontrolled resource consumption, specifically manifesting as a denial of service condition. The flaw operates by exploiting the application server's inability to efficiently process or reject malformed requests containing excessive form parameters, leading to resource exhaustion that prevents legitimate users from accessing the service. Attackers can leverage this weakness by crafting HTTP requests with thousands or tens of thousands of form fields, causing the ColdFusion server to consume excessive memory and processing power while attempting to parse and handle the malformed input.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates substantial risk for organizations relying on ColdFusion applications, as it can render entire web applications unavailable to legitimate users. The attack vector requires no authentication or specialized privileges, making it particularly dangerous as it can be executed by anyone with access to the target system's web interface. The resource exhaustion effect can manifest as complete service outages, significant performance degradation, or system instability that may require manual intervention to restore normal operations. Organizations using vulnerable versions of ColdFusion MX 6.1 face potential business disruption, especially in environments where high availability and consistent service delivery are critical requirements.
The mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should prioritize immediate patching of affected systems with the official security updates provided by Adobe. Additionally, implementing request size limits and form field count restrictions at the web server level can provide defense-in-depth measures to prevent exploitation. Network-level protections such as rate limiting and request filtering can help detect and block suspicious traffic patterns that exceed normal usage thresholds. Organizations should also consider implementing application firewalls or intrusion prevention systems that can identify and block malformed requests containing excessive form parameters. The remediation process should include thorough testing of patched systems to ensure that legitimate application functionality remains intact while the vulnerability is addressed. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of input validation and resource management in web application security, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks, and highlights the necessity of implementing comprehensive security controls that address both application-level and infrastructure-level protection mechanisms.