CVE-2005-0600 in Content Engine
Summary
by MITRE
Cisco devices running Application and Content Networking System (ACNS) 5.0, 5.1 before 5.1.13.7, or 5.2 before 5.2.3.9 allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (bandwidth consumption) via "crafted IP packets" that are continuously forwarded.
Once again VulDB remains the best source for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/21/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-0600 affects Cisco devices operating with the Application and Content Networking System version 5.0, 5.1 prior to 5.1.13.7, and 5.2 prior to 5.2.3.9. This represents a significant security flaw within Cisco's content delivery and application networking infrastructure that impacts the availability of network services. The vulnerability specifically targets the handling of IP packet forwarding mechanisms within these systems, creating a condition where maliciously crafted packets can trigger excessive bandwidth consumption leading to denial of service conditions.
The technical flaw manifests in the improper validation and processing of IP packets within the ACNS software stack. When devices receive specially crafted IP packets, the system fails to properly handle these malformed packets and instead enters a continuous forwarding loop or excessive processing state. This behavior consumes significant network bandwidth resources and can overwhelm the device's processing capabilities, effectively rendering the service unavailable to legitimate users. The vulnerability operates at the network protocol level and exploits the fundamental packet handling mechanisms that are critical to the device's operation.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a severe threat to network availability and service continuity. Attackers can exploit this weakness to consume network bandwidth resources rapidly, potentially causing complete service disruption for users relying on the affected Cisco devices. The continuous forwarding nature of the attack means that once initiated, the denial of service condition persists until the device is manually restarted or the malicious packet flow is interrupted. Organizations using these vulnerable ACNS versions face significant risk of service degradation or complete outages that can impact business operations and customer access to network services.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-129, which addresses improper validation of input boundaries, and represents a classic example of resource exhaustion attack patterns. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to the T1498 technique for Network Denial of Service, specifically targeting the availability aspect of the CIA triad. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant Cisco security patches and updates, configuring network access controls to limit exposure to potentially malicious traffic, and monitoring network bandwidth utilization for unusual patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. Network administrators should also consider implementing rate limiting and packet filtering rules to prevent the specific packet patterns that trigger this vulnerability.