CVE-2007-5901 in Kerberos
Summary
by MITRE
Use-after-free vulnerability in the gss_indicate_mechs function in lib/gssapi/mechglue/g_initialize.c in MIT Kerberos 5 (krb5) has unknown impact and attack vectors. NOTE: this might be the result of a typo in the source code.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/05/2019
The CVE-2007-5901 vulnerability represents a use-after-free condition within the gss_indicate_mechs function of MIT Kerberos 5 version 5, specifically located in the lib/gssapi/mechglue/g_initialize.c source file. This type of vulnerability occurs when a program continues to reference memory that has already been freed, potentially leading to unpredictable behavior and security consequences. The vulnerability exists within the mechanism glue layer of the Generic Security Services Application Program Interface implementation, which serves as a critical component for security token handling and authentication operations within the Kerberos ecosystem.
The technical flaw manifests in the improper memory management practices during the processing of GSSAPI mechanism indication operations. When the gss_indicate_mechs function handles requests for mechanism identification, it appears to free memory resources while still maintaining references to them, creating a scenario where subsequent operations might access already deallocated memory segments. This memory corruption vulnerability falls under the CWE-416 category of Use After Free, which is classified as a serious memory safety issue that can lead to arbitrary code execution or denial of service conditions. The vulnerability's potential impact extends beyond simple memory corruption since it affects the core security infrastructure that Kerberos 5 relies upon for authentication and authorization services.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant within environments that depend on MIT Kerberos 5 for security services, particularly in enterprise networks where authentication systems are critical for access control. Attackers who can exploit this vulnerability may potentially execute arbitrary code on systems running vulnerable versions of Kerberos 5, effectively compromising the authentication infrastructure. The unknown attack vectors mentioned in the CVE description suggest that the precise conditions required for exploitation are not fully documented, which makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous as it could be exploited through various means including network-based attacks or local privilege escalation scenarios. This vulnerability directly impacts the integrity and availability of Kerberos-based authentication services, potentially allowing unauthorized access to protected resources.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2007-5901 should prioritize immediate patching of affected systems with updated versions of MIT Kerberos 5 that address the memory management issues in the gss_indicate_mechs function. Organizations should implement comprehensive vulnerability management processes to identify and remediate all instances of the vulnerable software across their infrastructure. Network segmentation and monitoring should be enhanced to detect potential exploitation attempts, while system hardening measures including disabling unnecessary GSSAPI services and implementing strict access controls can reduce the attack surface. The vulnerability's classification under ATT&CK technique T1550.003 for use of Kerberos authentication and T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter suggests that exploitation could involve lateral movement within networks where Kerberos is deployed. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to verify that patched systems remain secure, while incident response procedures should be established to handle potential exploitation attempts that could compromise the core authentication infrastructure.