CVE-2007-3398 in LiteWEB
Summary
by MITRE
LiteWEB 2.7 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (hang) via a large number of requests for nonexistent pages.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/04/2018
CVE-2007-3398 represents a denial of service vulnerability affecting LiteWEB version 2.7, a lightweight web server implementation that was widely used in embedded systems and small-scale deployments during the mid-2000s. This vulnerability stems from the server's inadequate handling of concurrent requests for non-existent resources, creating a condition where the system becomes unresponsive and unable to process legitimate requests. The flaw manifests when attackers flood the server with a high volume of requests targeting pages that do not exist within the web root directory. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-400, which specifically addresses Uncontrolled Resource Consumption, a critical weakness that can lead to system instability and service disruption. From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to environments where LiteWEB serves as the primary web interface for networked devices, particularly in industrial control systems, IoT deployments, and embedded appliances where system availability is paramount. The attack vector is straightforward and requires minimal resources to execute, making it particularly dangerous in environments where automated scanning tools or malicious actors can easily exploit the weakness. The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the server's request processing loop failing to properly manage memory allocation and resource cleanup when handling malformed or non-existent page requests, leading to a gradual exhaustion of available system resources and ultimately causing the server process to hang. This behavior aligns with the ATT&CK framework's T1498 category for Network Denial of Service, which specifically addresses techniques that disrupt network services through resource exhaustion. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic example of insufficient input validation and resource management, where the server does not implement proper rate limiting or connection throttling mechanisms to prevent abuse. Organizations utilizing LiteWEB 2.7 should immediately implement mitigation strategies including network-level rate limiting, firewall rules to restrict excessive connections, and system monitoring to detect abnormal traffic patterns. The most effective long-term solution involves upgrading to a more recent version of the web server software that includes proper resource management and protection against excessive concurrent requests. Additionally, implementing intrusion detection systems and configuring automatic failover mechanisms can help maintain service availability during potential attacks. The vulnerability underscores the importance of proper resource management in embedded systems and highlights how seemingly minor implementation flaws can have significant operational impacts in critical infrastructure environments.