CVE-2010-0150 in PIX 500
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in Cisco ASA 5500 Series Adaptive Security Appliance 7.0 before 7.0(8.10), 7.2 before 7.2(4.45), 8.0 before 8.0(5.2), 8.1 before 8.1(2.37), and 8.2 before 8.2(1.16); and Cisco PIX 500 Series Security Appliance; allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (device reload) via malformed SIP messages, aka Bug ID CSCsy91157.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/01/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-0150 represents a critical denial of service weakness affecting Cisco's flagship security appliances including the ASA 5500 Series and PIX 500 Series devices. This flaw specifically targets the handling of Session Initiation Protocol messages within the affected software versions, creating a pathway for remote attackers to deliberately disrupt network security operations through carefully crafted malformed SIP packets. The vulnerability impacts multiple release branches of Cisco's security appliance software, spanning from version 7.0 through 8.2, with specific patch levels required to address the issue. The bug ID CSCsy91157 indicates this was a recognized defect within Cisco's internal tracking systems, highlighting the organization's awareness of the security gap.
Technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when the affected security appliances process malformed SIP messages that contain unexpected or improperly formatted data structures. The parsing logic within the appliance's SIP handling components fails to properly validate incoming message parameters, leading to memory corruption or unexpected state transitions that ultimately trigger a complete device reload. This behavior aligns with CWE-122, which describes buffer overflow conditions, and CWE-248, which covers improper exception handling in software systems. The attack vector requires only network access to the targeted appliance, making it particularly dangerous as remote exploitation is possible without requiring physical access or authentication credentials.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise network security posture and availability. When an appliance reloads due to this vulnerability, it temporarily removes the network from security protection, creating windows of exposure during the recovery period. Network administrators may experience service interruptions that could affect voice over IP communications, video conferencing, and other real-time applications that depend on SIP signaling. The vulnerability also represents a potential attack surface for broader network disruption campaigns, as multiple devices within an organization's infrastructure could be simultaneously targeted. According to ATT&CK framework category T1498, this vulnerability enables adversaries to perform denial of service attacks against network infrastructure components.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2010-0150 require immediate implementation of software updates and patches provided by Cisco, with particular attention to ensuring all affected appliances receive the appropriate version upgrades. Network administrators should implement access control lists and firewall rules to restrict SIP traffic to only trusted sources, reducing the attack surface where possible. Monitoring systems should be configured to detect unusual traffic patterns or repeated connection attempts that might indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, implementing redundant security appliances and failover mechanisms can help maintain network availability during patching operations or in the event of successful exploitation attempts. Organizations should also consider deploying intrusion detection systems specifically configured to identify malformed SIP traffic patterns that could indicate attempted exploitation of this vulnerability.