CVE-2010-0781 in WebSphere Application Server
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the administrative console in IBM WebSphere Application Server (WAS) 6.1 before 6.1.0.33 allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service (CPU consumption) via a crafted URL.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/27/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-0781 resides within IBM WebSphere Application Server version 6.1 prior to 6.1.0.33, specifically affecting the administrative console component. This issue represents a significant security weakness that enables remote authenticated attackers to exploit a flaw in the server's processing mechanisms, ultimately leading to a denial of service condition through excessive cpu consumption. The administrative console serves as a critical management interface for administrators to configure and monitor the application server, making this vulnerability particularly concerning as it could be leveraged to disrupt essential server operations.
The technical flaw manifests through a crafted URL that when processed by the vulnerable administrative console, triggers an abnormal consumption of cpu resources. This behavior aligns with CWE-400 vulnerability category, which encompasses issues related to the lack of proper resource management in software applications. The vulnerability specifically targets the way the administrative console handles incoming requests, suggesting that the server fails to properly validate or limit the processing of maliciously constructed url parameters. The flaw likely stems from insufficient input sanitization or inadequate bounds checking within the console's request parsing logic, allowing an authenticated user to submit specially crafted requests that cause the server to enter into resource-intensive processing loops.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability presents a serious threat to business continuity and system availability. The denial of service condition caused by excessive cpu consumption can severely impact the performance of the entire application server, potentially affecting multiple applications hosted on the same server instance. Since the attack requires only authenticated access, it represents a particularly dangerous threat vector as it could be exploited by malicious insiders or compromised legitimate users with administrative privileges. The vulnerability's remote nature means that attackers do not require physical access to the server environment, making it accessible from any location with network connectivity to the administrative console.
The attack vector and exploitation methodology demonstrate the importance of proper access controls and monitoring within enterprise application environments. IBM's security advisory recommends immediate deployment of the 6.1.0.33 fix pack to address this vulnerability, which would include patches to the administrative console's request handling mechanisms. Organizations should also implement network segmentation to limit access to the administrative console, enforce strict authentication controls, and monitor for unusual cpu utilization patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability highlights the critical need for regular security updates and patch management programs, as well as the importance of implementing defense-in-depth strategies that include network monitoring and access control measures. This issue aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 which involves network denial of service attacks, and demonstrates how seemingly minor flaws in administrative interfaces can have significant operational impacts on enterprise systems.