CVE-2005-2302 in powerdns
Summary
by MITRE
powerdns before 2.9.18 when allowing recursion to a restricted range of ip addresses does not properly handle questions from clients that are denied recursion which could cause a "blank out" of answers to those clients that are allowed to use recursion.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/01/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2005-2302 affects PowerDNS versions prior to 2.9.18 and represents a significant flaw in recursive DNS query handling mechanisms. This issue manifests when the DNS server is configured to allow recursion for a restricted range of IP addresses while simultaneously denying recursion to other clients. The flaw occurs in the server's response handling logic for denied recursive queries, creating a condition where legitimate clients within the allowed IP range may receive blank or incomplete responses to their DNS queries.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper handling of the recursive query denial process within PowerDNS. When a client outside the allowed IP range attempts to perform a recursive query, the system should properly reject the request and provide an appropriate response. However, the flawed implementation causes the server to inadvertently affect the response handling for legitimate clients within the permitted IP range. This creates a cascading effect where the denial of recursion to unauthorized clients results in the complete omission or blanking out of answers for authorized clients who are attempting recursive queries.
This vulnerability directly impacts the availability and integrity of DNS resolution services by potentially causing complete response failures for legitimate users within the allowed IP range. The operational consequences are severe as it can lead to complete DNS resolution failures for authorized clients, effectively breaking internet connectivity for those users. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially enabling denial of service attacks against specific client groups while maintaining access for others, creating a targeted disruption scenario.
The vulnerability maps to CWE-200, which addresses "Information Exposure Through Output with Sensitive Data," and potentially CWE-400, "Uncontrolled Resource Consumption." From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability could be leveraged in the T1499.004 technique related to network denial of service attacks, and may also support T1566.002 for social engineering through service disruption. The flaw demonstrates poor input validation and output handling in network services, where the system fails to properly isolate and handle different client access levels.
Mitigation strategies should focus on upgrading to PowerDNS version 2.9.18 or later, which contains the necessary fixes for proper recursion handling. Network administrators should also implement additional monitoring to detect unusual patterns in DNS response behavior and consider implementing more granular access controls for recursive queries. The fix typically involves proper separation of denial handling logic from legitimate response processing, ensuring that unauthorized client requests do not interfere with the response mechanisms for authorized clients. Additional defensive measures include implementing rate limiting, logging comprehensive access attempts, and conducting regular security audits of DNS configurations to prevent similar issues in other network services.