CVE-2008-5427 in Norton Internet Security 2008
Summary
by MITRE
Norton Antivirus in Norton Internet Security 15.5.0.23 does not properly handle (1) multipart/mixed e-mail messages with many MIME parts and possibly (2) e-mail messages with many "Content-type: message/rfc822;" headers, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (stack consumption or other resource consumption) via a large e-mail message, a related issue to CVE-2006-1173.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/27/2017
The vulnerability described in CVE-2008-5427 represents a critical denial of service weakness within Norton Antivirus software, specifically affecting Norton Internet Security version 15.5.0.23. This flaw manifests when the antivirus system processes email messages that contain excessive multipart content or an abundance of rfc822 message headers. The issue stems from inadequate input validation and resource management within the email scanning component of the security suite. The vulnerability operates by exploiting the software's failure to properly handle complex email structures that could potentially overwhelm system resources during the scanning process.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the improper handling of email message parsing routines that are designed to process standard email formats but fail when confronted with malformed or excessively complex multipart messages. When the antivirus engine encounters email messages with numerous MIME parts or multiple message/rfc822 headers, the parsing algorithm becomes susceptible to resource exhaustion. This occurs because the software does not implement adequate bounds checking or resource limiting mechanisms during the email content analysis phase. The flaw can be categorized under CWE-400 as "Uncontrolled Resource Consumption" and specifically relates to improper handling of input data structures that leads to excessive memory allocation or stack overflow conditions.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability creates a significant risk for organizations relying on Norton Internet Security for email protection. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting specially designed email messages that contain excessive multipart content or numerous rfc822 headers, which when processed by the antivirus system result in substantial resource consumption. The impact includes potential system instability, application crashes, and complete service unavailability for the affected email scanning functionality. This type of attack falls under the ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for "Resource Hijacking" and represents a classic example of a denial of service attack that can be executed remotely without requiring authentication or privileged access. Organizations may experience disruptions in email services, increased system load, and potential cascading failures in email infrastructure.
The mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing proper input validation and resource limiting within email scanning processes. System administrators should consider applying the vendor-provided security patches or updates that address this specific parsing flaw. Additionally, implementing email filtering rules that limit the number of MIME parts or rfc822 headers in incoming messages can provide effective protection against exploitation. Network-level controls such as email size limits and attachment filtering can also reduce the attack surface. The implementation of monitoring solutions to detect unusual resource consumption patterns during email processing can provide early warning of potential exploitation attempts. Organizations should also consider alternative email security solutions or additional layers of protection to reduce dependency on a single vulnerable component. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar weaknesses in other email processing components within the broader security infrastructure.