CVE-2005-3164 in Mac OS X
Summary
by MITRE
The AJP connector in Apache Tomcat 4.0.1 through 4.0.6 and 4.1.0 through 4.1.36, as used in Hitachi Cosminexus Application Server and standalone, does not properly handle when a connection is broken before request body data is sent in a POST request, which can lead to an information leak when "unsuitable request body data" is used for a different request, possibly related to Java Servlet pages.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/12/2019
The vulnerability described in CVE-2005-3164 represents a critical flaw in the Apache Tomcat AJP connector implementation that affects versions ranging from 4.0.1 through 4.0.6 and 4.1.0 through 4.1.36. This issue specifically manifests when a client establishes a connection to the Tomcat server through the AJP protocol but terminates the connection prematurely before transmitting the complete POST request body data. The flaw stems from inadequate handling of connection termination events during the request processing phase, creating a scenario where memory or buffer contents from previous requests may persist and be incorrectly associated with subsequent requests. The vulnerability operates under CWE-121, which classifies it as a buffer overflow condition, though in this case it manifests as an information leak rather than a direct execution exploit. The AJP protocol serves as a binary protocol that enables efficient communication between web servers and application servers, commonly used in environments where Apache HTTP Server is fronted by Tomcat for application processing.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when a malicious actor crafts a POST request that initiates a connection to the Tomcat server through AJP but interrupts the transmission before the complete request body is sent. During this interruption, the server's AJP connector fails to properly clean up or reset its internal state, allowing residual data from previous requests to remain in memory or buffer structures. When subsequent requests are processed, this contaminated data may be inadvertently included in the processing context, particularly when the server attempts to handle Java Servlet pages that rely on request body data. The information leak can expose sensitive data from one request to another, potentially including session information, user credentials, or application-specific data that should remain isolated between different request contexts. This flaw particularly affects the Hitachi Cosminexus Application Server environment where the vulnerability was originally identified, though it impacts standalone Tomcat installations as well.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure to potentially enable more sophisticated attacks against web applications running on affected Tomcat versions. An attacker could leverage this flaw to gain access to session tokens, authentication credentials, or other sensitive data that might be present in the request buffer when the connection is terminated prematurely. The vulnerability's exploitation requires a relatively simple attack pattern involving connection interruption and subsequent request processing, making it accessible to attackers with basic network manipulation capabilities. The issue affects the fundamental security model of the application server by breaking the isolation between individual requests, which is a core principle of web application security. This vulnerability can be classified under ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for initial access through malicious web content, and potentially T1071.004 for application layer protocol usage.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2005-3164 focus primarily on upgrading to patched versions of Apache Tomcat where the AJP connector properly handles connection termination events and cleans up request state appropriately. Organizations should immediately upgrade to Tomcat versions 4.1.37 or later, where the AJP connector has been modified to properly reset internal buffers and state variables when connections are terminated prematurely. Additionally, administrators should consider implementing network-level controls to restrict direct AJP connections to trusted sources only, as the vulnerability is more easily exploited when AJP connectors are exposed to untrusted networks. The implementation of proper request validation and buffer management within application code can also help mitigate the risk, though the primary fix must occur at the server level. Security monitoring should include detection of unusual connection patterns and premature connection terminations that might indicate exploitation attempts. Organizations using Hitachi Cosminexus Application Server should also ensure they are running patched versions of the application server that address this specific vulnerability in the integrated Tomcat component. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper state management in web application servers and highlights the need for thorough testing of connection handling logic under various network conditions.