CVE-2007-1495 in Norton Personal Firewall
Summary
by MITRE
The \Device\SymEvent driver in Symantec Norton Personal Firewall 2006 9.1.1.7, and possibly other products using symevent.sys 12.0.0.20, allows local users to cause a denial of service (system crash) via invalid data, as demonstrated by calling DeviceIoControl to send the data, a reintroduction of CVE-2006-4855.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/11/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-1495 represents a critical denial of service flaw within Symantec Norton Personal Firewall 2006 version 9.1.1.7 and potentially other products utilizing the symevent.sys driver version 12.0.0.20. This issue stems from inadequate input validation within the kernel-mode device driver responsible for handling system events and firewall operations. The flaw manifests when local users exploit improper data handling mechanisms within the SymEvent driver, specifically through the DeviceIoControl function call interface, which allows arbitrary data to be sent to the vulnerable driver without sufficient sanitization or validation checks.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through a specific attack vector involving the DeviceIoControl system call, which is commonly used by user-mode applications to communicate with kernel-mode drivers. When malicious or malformed data is transmitted to the symevent.sys driver, the driver fails to properly validate the incoming parameters or data structures, leading to memory corruption or unexpected behavior that ultimately results in system instability and complete crash. This represents a classic buffer overflow or parameter validation vulnerability that has been previously documented as CVE-2006-4855, indicating this was a re-introduced or regressed flaw within the software lifecycle. The vulnerability operates at the kernel level, making it particularly dangerous as it can affect the entire operating system stability rather than just the application layer.
The operational impact of CVE-2007-1495 extends beyond simple service disruption to encompass complete system compromise and potential denial of service for legitimate users. Local attackers who can execute code on the target system gain the ability to crash the firewall service and potentially the entire operating system, effectively rendering the security protection mechanisms ineffective and creating a window of opportunity for further exploitation. This vulnerability directly impacts the availability aspect of the CIA triad, as it can be leveraged to deny system services to authorized users while simultaneously undermining the security posture of the affected system. The attack requires local system access but does not require administrative privileges, making it particularly concerning for environments where user access controls may be less stringent.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate patch application from Symantec, as the vendor would have released a firmware update addressing the input validation issues within the symevent.sys driver. System administrators should implement comprehensive monitoring for unusual DeviceIoControl calls targeting the vulnerable driver and establish baseline system behavior for detecting anomalous activity. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-129, which describes improper validation of input boundaries, and relates to ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security controls such as driver signature enforcement, kernel-mode code integrity checks, and regular vulnerability assessments to prevent similar issues from emerging in other security components. The remediation process must include thorough testing of patches to ensure that security updates do not introduce compatibility issues with existing security infrastructure while maintaining the integrity of the system's protective mechanisms.