CVE-2005-2208 in PrivaShare
Summary
by MITRE
PrivaShare 1.1b allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a malformed message.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/10/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-2208 affects PrivaShare version 1.1b, a file sharing application that was widely used in enterprise environments during the mid-2000s. This particular flaw represents a classic denial of service vulnerability that exploits improper input validation mechanisms within the application's message handling subsystem. The vulnerability resides in the application's inability to properly process malformed network messages, which can trigger unexpected behavior leading to application instability and complete system termination.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-129, which addresses improper validation of input length or value, and CWE-131, which covers improper handling of length parameters in input operations. When a remote attacker sends a specially crafted malformed message to a PrivaShare server or client, the application fails to validate the message structure properly, causing the system to crash or become unresponsive. This type of vulnerability operates at the protocol level where the application does not implement adequate error handling for unexpected message formats, leading to memory corruption or stack overflow conditions that result in immediate termination of the service.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a significant risk to organizations relying on PrivaShare for file sharing operations. The remote exploitation capability means that attackers can compromise systems without requiring local access or credentials, making it particularly dangerous in networked environments. The impact extends beyond simple service interruption as the denial of service can disrupt business operations, potentially affecting collaboration workflows and data access for multiple users simultaneously. Organizations using this software would experience service degradation that could last until manual intervention occurs to restart the affected services.
The attack surface for this vulnerability is broad as it affects both client and server components of the PrivaShare application, making it difficult to contain within specific network segments. The exploitation requires minimal technical skill and can be automated, making it attractive to threat actors seeking to disrupt operations. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1499.004, which covers network denial of service attacks, and T1595.001, involving network infiltration through remote services. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit exposure, deploy intrusion detection systems to monitor for malformed traffic patterns, and ensure immediate patching of affected systems. Additionally, configuring firewalls to restrict access to PrivaShare services and implementing proper input validation measures would help mitigate the risk of exploitation.