CVE-2007-2722 in NewzCrawler
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in NewzCrawler 1.8 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application instability) via certain invalid strings in the URL attribute of an ENCLOSURE element, as demonstrated by a "%s" sequence, a "%Y" sequence, a "%%" sequence, and an "n," sequence.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/15/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-2722 represents a denial of service weakness within NewzCrawler version 1.8 that stems from inadequate input validation mechanisms. This flaw manifests when the application processes RSS feed data containing malformed strings within the URL attribute of an ENCLOSURE element. The vulnerability operates at the application layer where the software fails to properly sanitize or validate user-supplied data before processing it, creating an exploitable condition that can be leveraged by remote attackers to disrupt service availability. The specific sequences that trigger this vulnerability include "%s" which represents a format string specifier, "%Y" which denotes a year formatting sequence, "%%" which constitutes an escaped percent character, and "n," which appears to be a newline character sequence. These particular string patterns exploit parsing inconsistencies in how NewzCrawler handles malformed data within RSS feed structures, particularly when encountering format specifiers or escape sequences that the application does not properly anticipate or handle.
The technical execution of this vulnerability relies on the application's failure to implement proper input sanitization and validation routines. When NewzCrawler encounters these specific invalid string patterns within the ENCLOSURE element's URL attribute, it likely attempts to process these sequences without adequate protection mechanisms, potentially leading to buffer overflows, memory corruption, or other instability conditions that cause the application to crash or become unresponsive. This behavior aligns with common software vulnerabilities classified under CWE-129 which addresses insufficient input validation, and CWE-770 which covers allocation of resources without proper limits. The attack vector is remote and requires no authentication, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by anyone who can submit malicious RSS feed data to a vulnerable system. The vulnerability essentially represents a classic case of improper handling of format strings or special characters that can cause applications to behave unpredictably when processing user-controlled inputs.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability directly compromises the availability and stability of NewzCrawler applications that process RSS feeds from untrusted sources. The denial of service condition can result in complete application failure, requiring manual intervention to restart services and potentially causing disruption to users who rely on the application for news aggregation. The vulnerability's exploitation is relatively straightforward for attackers who can craft malicious RSS feeds containing the specified invalid sequences, making it a significant concern for organizations that depend on automated feed processing. This weakness affects the core functionality of the application by preventing it from properly handling legitimate feed data that may contain these problematic sequences, either through accidental injection or malicious intent. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise the reliability of information services that depend on the application's stable operation.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing robust input validation and sanitization mechanisms within the RSS feed processing pipeline. Organizations should ensure that all user-supplied data, particularly URL attributes within feed elements, undergo thorough validation before being processed by the application. This includes implementing proper format string handling, escaping special characters, and establishing input length limits to prevent buffer overflow conditions. The recommended approach involves filtering or escaping potentially dangerous sequences before they can be processed by the application, which aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203 for exploitation of remote services. Additionally, implementing proper error handling and graceful degradation mechanisms can help prevent complete application crashes when malformed data is encountered. Regular updates and patches should be applied to ensure that known vulnerabilities are addressed, and input validation should be integrated into the application's security architecture rather than being treated as an afterthought. Security monitoring should also be implemented to detect unusual patterns in feed processing that might indicate exploitation attempts.