CVE-2011-0389 in TelePresence Multipoint Switch
Summary
by MITRE
Cisco TelePresence Multipoint Switch (CTMS) devices with software 1.0.x, 1.1.x, 1.5.x, and 1.6.x allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (process crash) via a crafted Real-Time Transport Control Protocol (RTCP) UDP packet, aka Bug ID CSCth60993.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/01/2024
The Cisco TelePresence Multipoint Switch CTMS devices represent critical infrastructure components within enterprise communication networks, facilitating multi-party video conferencing sessions across distributed organizations. These devices operate as central switching points that manage the flow of multimedia traffic between multiple participants in telepresence environments, making them essential targets for both legitimate network operations and potential security adversaries. The vulnerability described in CVE-2011-0389 specifically affects software versions 1.0.x through 1.6.x, indicating a widespread impact across multiple release cycles of the CTMS platform.
The technical flaw manifests through improper handling of Real-Time Transport Control Protocol packets within the UDP transport layer of the CTMS device. When a specially crafted RTCP packet is transmitted to the device, the system fails to properly validate or process the packet contents, leading to a critical buffer overflow or memory corruption condition. This vulnerability operates at the network protocol level, exploiting weaknesses in the packet parsing logic that governs how the device interprets incoming control information. The RTCP protocol is designed to provide feedback and control information for RTP streams, but the CTMS implementation lacks adequate input sanitization mechanisms that would normally prevent malformed packets from causing system instability.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption, as it represents a significant threat to enterprise communication infrastructure reliability. Remote attackers can exploit this weakness from any location on the network without requiring authentication credentials, making the attack surface extremely broad and difficult to control. The resulting denial of service condition causes the CTMS process to crash and restart, potentially interrupting ongoing video conferences and disrupting business continuity for organizations relying on telepresence capabilities. This vulnerability directly affects the availability aspect of the CIA security triad, compromising the system's ability to provide continuous service to authorized users.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should prioritize immediate remediation through official Cisco software updates and patches, as the vulnerability allows for unauthenticated remote exploitation. Network segmentation strategies should be implemented to limit exposure of CTMS devices to untrusted network segments, while implementing network access controls to restrict UDP traffic on ports typically used for RTCP communications. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and represents a classic example of insufficient input validation in network protocol implementations. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to the T1499.004 technique related to network disruption and T1566.001 for initial access through network service exploitation, highlighting the multi-layered threat implications of such a flaw in enterprise communication infrastructure.