CVE-2007-5656 in Enterprise Message Service
Summary
by MITRE
TIBCO SmartSockets RTserver 6.8.0 and earlier, RTworks before 4.0.4, and Enterprise Message Service (EMS) 4.0.0 through 4.4.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) and possibly execute arbitrary code via crafted requests that control loop operations related to memory.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/26/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-5656 affects TIBCO SmartSockets RTserver versions 6.8.0 and earlier, RTworks versions before 4.0.4, and Enterprise Message Service (EMS) versions 4.0.0 through 4.4.1. This represents a critical security flaw that stems from improper handling of memory operations within the affected TIBCO software components. The vulnerability specifically targets loop control mechanisms that manage memory allocation and deallocation processes, creating a pathway for remote attackers to exploit the system through carefully crafted malicious requests. The flaw demonstrates characteristics consistent with memory corruption vulnerabilities that can lead to system instability and potential code execution.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves manipulation of loop operations that govern how memory is managed within the TIBCO messaging infrastructure. When attackers submit specially crafted requests, they can influence the execution flow of memory management loops, potentially causing buffer overflows, heap corruption, or other memory-related anomalies. These conditions can trigger system crashes or, in more severe cases, allow attackers to execute arbitrary code on the affected systems. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple denial of service as it provides a potential pathway for privilege escalation and unauthorized system access. This type of flaw typically maps to CWE-129, which addresses insufficient input validation, and CWE-125, which covers out-of-bounds read conditions, both of which are fundamental memory management issues.
From an operational perspective, the vulnerability presents significant risk to organizations relying on TIBCO messaging infrastructure for critical business operations. The remote exploit capability means that attackers can target these systems from outside the network perimeter without requiring physical access or legitimate credentials. The potential for both denial of service and arbitrary code execution creates a dual threat that can disrupt business continuity while simultaneously providing attackers with persistent access to the compromised systems. Organizations using affected versions of TIBCO SmartSockets, RTworks, or EMS face the risk of complete system compromise, data loss, and unauthorized access to sensitive business information. The vulnerability's impact is amplified by the fact that TIBCO products are commonly used in mission-critical applications such as financial services, healthcare systems, and enterprise resource planning platforms.
The mitigation strategy for CVE-2007-5656 requires immediate patching of all affected TIBCO software components to the latest available versions that contain fixes for the memory handling issues. Organizations should prioritize upgrading RTserver to version 6.8.1 or later, RTworks to version 4.0.4 or later, and EMS to version 4.4.2 or later. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be implemented to restrict access to TIBCO services, particularly limiting direct internet exposure of these components. Additionally, implementing intrusion detection systems and monitoring for unusual traffic patterns related to memory operations can help detect potential exploitation attempts. Security teams should also conduct thorough vulnerability assessments of their TIBCO installations and consider implementing application whitelisting controls to prevent unauthorized code execution. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service and potentially T1059 for command and scripting interpreter usage if code execution occurs. The affected systems should be monitored for any signs of compromise and incident response procedures should be activated immediately upon detection of exploitation attempts.