CVE-2007-5957 in Informix Dynamic Server
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in IBM Informix Dynamic Server (IDS) 10.00.TC3TL and 11.10.TB4TL on Windows allows attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via unspecified SQ_ONASSIST requests.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/31/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-5957 affects IBM Informix Dynamic Server versions 10.00.TC3TL and 11.10.TB4TL running on Windows platforms, representing a critical security flaw that enables remote attackers to induce application crashes through malformed SQ_ONASSIST requests. This issue falls under the broader category of denial of service vulnerabilities, specifically targeting the database server's request processing mechanisms. The vulnerability exists within the server's handling of specific database assistant requests, which are typically used for database administration and monitoring purposes. These SQ_ONASSIST requests are part of the Informix server's communication protocol and are designed to facilitate various administrative functions. However, the implementation contains a flaw that allows crafted requests to trigger unexpected behavior leading to complete application termination.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation within the SQ_ONASSIST request processing subsystem of the Informix Dynamic Server. When the server receives a malformed or specially crafted SQ_ONASSIST request, it fails to properly validate the request parameters or handle unexpected data structures, resulting in memory corruption or stack overflow conditions. This processing failure ultimately leads to the application crashing and becoming unavailable to legitimate users. The vulnerability is classified as a buffer overflow or memory corruption issue, which aligns with CWE-121, which covers stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and CWE-125, which addresses out-of-bounds read conditions. The flaw demonstrates poor error handling and input sanitization practices within the server's protocol implementation, making it susceptible to exploitation by attackers who can craft malicious requests without requiring authentication.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to database availability and business continuity. Organizations relying on IBM Informix Dynamic Server for critical database operations face potential service disruption when attackers exploit this vulnerability, as the application crash renders the database server temporarily inaccessible. The impact extends beyond simple unavailability, as database downtime can result in cascading failures throughout dependent applications and services that rely on the database for their operation. This vulnerability particularly affects environments where the database server is exposed to untrusted networks or where administrative access is not properly restricted. The attack vector requires only the ability to send specific requests to the database server, making it relatively easy to exploit compared to more complex attack scenarios. This characteristic places the vulnerability in the ATT&CK framework under the T1499.004 technique category, which covers "Toggle Service" and "Resource Hijacking" activities, and T1070.004 for "Indicator Removal on Host" as attackers may attempt to cover their tracks after successful exploitation.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability include immediate deployment of available patches from IBM, which would address the input validation issues within the SQ_ONASSIST request handling. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to the database server to only trusted sources and establish proper firewall rules to restrict the types of requests that can reach the database service. The principle of least privilege should be enforced by ensuring that only necessary administrative accounts have access to database assistant functionality. Additionally, monitoring systems should be configured to detect unusual patterns of database connection attempts or request types that might indicate exploitation attempts. Regular vulnerability assessments and security audits should be conducted to identify similar issues within the database infrastructure. The remediation process should also include implementing intrusion detection systems that can identify and alert on suspicious SQ_ONASSIST request patterns, as well as establishing incident response procedures specifically for database server availability issues. Organizations should also consider implementing database activity monitoring tools that can provide visibility into database operations and help detect anomalous behavior indicative of exploitation attempts.