CVE-2006-5801 in owfs
Summary
by MITRE
The owserver module in owfs and owhttpd 2.5p5 and earlier does not properly check the path type, which allows attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) related to use of the path in owshell.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/26/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2006-5801 affects the owserver module within the owfs and owhttpd software versions 2.5p5 and earlier. This issue stems from inadequate validation of path types during processing, creating a potential avenue for malicious actors to exploit the system. The vulnerability specifically targets the interaction between the owserver module and owshell functionality, where improper path handling can lead to application instability and system crashes. The flaw represents a critical weakness in the input validation mechanisms that govern how file system paths are processed and interpreted within the affected software stack.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the owserver module's failure to properly validate the type of path being processed during operations with owshell. When an attacker provides a malformed or unexpected path input, the system lacks proper sanitization and validation checks that would normally occur before path processing. This absence of path type verification allows malicious inputs to bypass normal processing boundaries, ultimately leading to memory corruption or invalid memory access patterns that cause the application to terminate unexpectedly. The vulnerability operates at the intersection of input validation and memory management, where insufficient bounds checking enables arbitrary code execution patterns that result in application crashes.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates significant risks for systems relying on owfs and owhttpd for 1wire device communication and management. The denial of service condition can disrupt critical infrastructure monitoring systems that depend on continuous operation of these services. Organizations using affected versions may experience unexpected service interruptions, potentially leading to loss of device monitoring capabilities and operational downtime. The vulnerability's exploitation can occur remotely through network-based attacks, making it particularly dangerous for networked environments where these services are exposed to untrusted users or external networks. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise the availability of entire monitoring infrastructures.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability should focus on immediate software updates to versions that address the path validation issue. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to affected services and deploy intrusion detection systems to monitor for suspicious path inputs. The fix typically involves implementing comprehensive input validation routines that check path types before processing, ensuring that only properly formatted paths are accepted by the owserver module. Additionally, system administrators should consider implementing application-level firewalls or web application firewalls to filter malicious inputs before they reach the vulnerable components. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation, and represents a classic example of how inadequate validation can lead to denial of service conditions that compromise system availability. The ATT&CK framework would categorize this as a denial of service attack vector that targets application stability and availability through input manipulation techniques.