CVE-2007-0422 in WebLogic Server
Summary
by MITRE
BEA WebLogic Server 9.0, 9.1, and 9.2 Gold, when running on Solaris 9, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (server inaccessibility) via manipulated socket connections.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/22/2019
BEA WebLogic Server versions 9.0, 9.1, and 9.2 running on Solaris 9 operating systems contain a critical vulnerability that enables remote attackers to execute denial of service attacks through manipulation of socket connections. This vulnerability represents a significant security flaw in the application server's network handling mechanisms, specifically affecting the server's ability to maintain stable socket connections under certain conditions. The issue stems from insufficient validation and handling of malformed or manipulated socket connection requests that can cause the server to become unresponsive and inaccessible to legitimate users. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-119, which addresses weaknesses in memory handling, and more specifically relates to improper handling of network connections and socket management. The attack vector operates through remote exploitation without requiring authentication, making it particularly dangerous as attackers can target the server from external networks. When exploited, the vulnerability causes the WebLogic Server to crash or become unresponsive, effectively rendering the application server inaccessible to both authorized users and legitimate business applications that depend on its services.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the server's failure to properly validate incoming socket connection parameters and handle abnormal connection states. During normal operation, WebLogic Server processes incoming network requests through its socket handling mechanisms, but when faced with manipulated socket connections containing malformed data or unexpected connection patterns, the server's connection management code fails to gracefully handle these conditions. This leads to a cascade of failures where the server becomes unable to process additional requests or maintain existing connections, ultimately resulting in complete server inaccessibility. The vulnerability is particularly severe because it affects the core networking infrastructure of the application server, making it impossible for legitimate clients to establish or maintain connections. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption as the server may require manual restart to recover, causing extended downtime and potential business interruption. This type of vulnerability falls under the ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers network denial of service attacks, and represents a fundamental failure in the server's resilience against malformed network traffic.
The operational impact of CVE-2007-0422 extends far beyond immediate service disruption, creating cascading effects throughout enterprise IT infrastructure that relies on WebLogic Server for mission-critical applications. Organizations running affected versions of BEA WebLogic Server face potential revenue loss due to extended downtime, increased incident response costs, and potential data access limitations during server recovery periods. The vulnerability particularly affects financial services, e-commerce platforms, and other businesses where application availability is paramount, as even brief server outages can result in significant financial consequences. System administrators must implement immediate mitigations while planning for comprehensive patching strategies, as the vulnerability does not require any special privileges or authentication credentials to exploit. The affected configurations specifically target Solaris 9 environments, indicating that the vulnerability may be related to platform-specific socket handling behaviors or kernel-level network stack interactions. Organizations should consider implementing network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure while patches are deployed, as the vulnerability creates an attack surface that can be exploited by automated scanning tools and malicious actors seeking to disrupt services. Recovery from exploitation typically requires manual intervention, including server restarts and potentially system reinstallation, making the vulnerability particularly costly to remediate in production environments.