CVE-2007-3046 in Vortex Library
Summary
by MITRE
Buffer overflow in Advanced Software Production Line Vortex Library before 1.0.3 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (listener crash) via unspecified vectors related to the select I/O implementation and the file set buffer. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/26/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-3046 represents a critical buffer overflow flaw within the Advanced Software Production Line Vortex Library version 1.0.2 and earlier. This security weakness resides in the library's handling of I/O operations and file set buffer management, creating a significant risk for systems that rely on this component for network communication and data processing tasks. The vulnerability specifically affects the select I/O implementation which is fundamental to asynchronous network programming and event handling mechanisms.
The technical nature of this flaw stems from improper bounds checking within the Vortex Library's buffer management system, particularly when processing file descriptor sets during select system calls. When remote attackers send maliciously crafted input data to applications using this library, the buffer overflow condition occurs during the processing of I/O events, leading to memory corruption that ultimately causes the listening process to crash. This vulnerability manifests as a denial of service condition where legitimate users lose access to the affected service due to the listener process termination. The flaw operates at the kernel level within the select() system call implementation, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited without requiring local system access or elevated privileges.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability creates substantial risk for network services that depend on the Vortex Library for handling concurrent connections and asynchronous I/O operations. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption as the crash can occur at any point during normal operation, potentially leading to cascading failures in larger network infrastructures where such libraries are integrated into critical applications. Attackers can exploit this weakness to repeatedly crash services, creating persistent denial of service conditions that may require system restarts and manual intervention to restore normal operations. The vulnerability's remote exploitability means that attackers can target systems from outside the local network, making it particularly dangerous for publicly accessible services and web applications that utilize this library.
Security professionals should consider this vulnerability in the context of the CWE-121 buffer overflow category which encompasses memory corruption issues where data is written beyond allocated buffer boundaries. The ATT&CK framework would classify this as a denial of service attack vector under the system service interruption category, specifically targeting network services through memory corruption techniques. Organizations using affected versions of the Vortex Library should implement immediate patching strategies, as the vulnerability affects the core I/O handling mechanisms that are fundamental to network service reliability. Additionally, network segmentation and intrusion detection systems should be configured to monitor for suspicious I/O patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, while application-level monitoring should be implemented to detect service crashes and automatic restart mechanisms should be configured to minimize downtime impact. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date third-party libraries and implementing proper input validation and bounds checking in all I/O handling components to prevent similar memory corruption issues from compromising system availability and stability.