CVE-2010-2332 in Impact PDF Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Impact Financials, Inc. Impact PDF Reader 2.0, 1.2, and other versions for iPhone and iPod touch allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (server crash) via a "..." body in a POST request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/23/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-2332 affects Impact Financials Inc.'s Impact PDF Reader application versions 2.0 and 1.2 specifically designed for iPhone and iPod touch devices. This security flaw represents a classic denial of service vulnerability that can be exploited by remote attackers to disrupt the normal operation of the affected system. The vulnerability manifests when the application processes a POST request containing a malformed body with the specific sequence of characters ".." which triggers an unexpected behavior in the application's request handling mechanism.
The technical flaw resides in the application's insufficient input validation and error handling procedures within its web request processing component. When the Impact PDF Reader encounters a POST request with the ".." sequence in the body content, it fails to properly sanitize or validate this input before processing. This inadequate validation creates a condition where the application cannot gracefully handle the malformed data, leading to an application crash or server instability. The vulnerability demonstrates poor defensive programming practices and highlights the importance of implementing robust input sanitization mechanisms to prevent unexpected behavior when processing external data.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption as it can affect the availability and reliability of the PDF reading application on mobile devices. Remote attackers can exploit this weakness to repeatedly crash the application, rendering it unusable for legitimate users and potentially affecting business operations that depend on the application for document processing. The vulnerability affects multiple versions of the application, indicating a widespread issue that would require coordinated patching efforts across different release versions. This type of denial of service attack can be particularly damaging in enterprise environments where mobile PDF processing capabilities are critical for business operations.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation, and represents a clear example of how insufficient sanitization can lead to application instability. The attack vector through POST requests indicates that this vulnerability could be exploited through web-based attacks or potentially through maliciously crafted web services that interact with the mobile application. Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing comprehensive input validation, proper error handling, and robust sanitization of all external data before processing. Security practitioners should also consider implementing network-level protections such as intrusion detection systems and web application firewalls to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. The vulnerability serves as a reminder of the critical importance of secure coding practices and thorough testing of input handling mechanisms in mobile applications.