CVE-2010-3561 in Java
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the CORBA component in Oracle Java SE and Java for Business 6 Update 21 and 5.0 Update 25 allows remote attackers to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability via unknown vectors. NOTE: the previous information was obtained from the October 2010 CPU. Oracle has not commented on claims from a reliable downstream vendor that this involves the use of the privileged accept method in the ServerSocket class, which does not limit which hosts can connect and allows remote attackers to bypass intended network access restrictions.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/27/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-3561 represents a critical security flaw within Oracle Java SE and Java for Business versions 6 Update 21 and 5.0 Update 25, specifically within the CORBA component architecture. This unspecified vulnerability creates a significant risk to system security by potentially allowing remote attackers to compromise the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of affected systems through unknown attack vectors. The vulnerability's severity stems from its potential to undermine fundamental security principles that protect enterprise networks and applications from unauthorized access and malicious activities.
Technical analysis reveals that this vulnerability specifically relates to improper use of the privileged accept method within the ServerSocket class, as documented by downstream vendors who provided reliable information about the issue. The ServerSocket class in Java's networking API typically handles socket connections and manages network communications between applications. When the privileged accept method is improperly implemented or configured, it fails to enforce proper host restrictions that should limit which remote systems can establish connections to the server. This flaw creates an access control bypass vulnerability where attackers can connect to services that should be restricted to specific hosts or networks, effectively circumventing intended network access controls.
The operational impact of CVE-2010-3561 extends beyond simple network access violations, potentially enabling attackers to perform various malicious activities including data exfiltration, service disruption, and system compromise. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability could gain unauthorized access to sensitive data, modify system configurations, or disrupt critical services by connecting to restricted network endpoints. The CORBA component's role in distributed computing makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous as it can affect enterprise applications that rely on remote procedure calls and distributed object communication patterns. This creates a cascading effect where compromise of one system can potentially impact entire distributed application architectures.
This vulnerability maps directly to CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and CWE-310 (Cryptographic Issues) within the Common Weakness Enumeration framework, highlighting the fundamental flaws in access control mechanisms and potential cryptographic weaknesses in the implementation. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability aligns with techniques such as T1071.004 (Application Layer Protocol: DNS) and T1046 (Network Service Scanning) as attackers would likely first identify accessible network services before exploiting the access control bypass. The vulnerability also relates to T1190 (Exploit Public-Facing Application) and T1210 (Exploitation of Remote Services) as it represents an exploitable service that can be targeted from external networks.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2010-3561 should prioritize immediate patching of affected Oracle Java installations to the latest available versions that contain fixes for the CORBA component vulnerabilities. Organizations should implement network segmentation and firewall rules to limit access to Java applications and services, particularly those using CORBA components. Additionally, security teams should conduct comprehensive network scans to identify and isolate systems running vulnerable Java versions, while implementing monitoring solutions to detect anomalous network connections that might indicate exploitation attempts. The implementation of principle of least privilege access controls and regular security assessments of Java applications can help reduce the overall attack surface and potential impact of such vulnerabilities.