CVE-2011-1394 in Maximo Asset Management
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Maximo Asset Management and Asset Management Essentials 6.2, 7.1, and 7.5; IBM Tivoli Asset Management for IT 6.2, 7.1, and 7.2; IBM Tivoli Service Request Manager 7.1 and 7.2; IBM Maximo Service Desk 6.2; and IBM Tivoli Change and Configuration Management Database (CCMDB) 6.2, 7.1, and 7.2 allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption) by establishing many UI sessions within one HTTP session.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/30/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-1394 affects multiple IBM asset management and service management products including Maximo Asset Management, Tivoli Asset Management for IT, Tivoli Service Request Manager, Maximo Service Desk, and Tivoli Change and Configuration Management Database across several version releases. This flaw represents a denial of service condition that specifically targets memory consumption within the application's user interface session management mechanisms. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it allows remote attackers to exploit a weakness in how the systems handle multiple user interface sessions within a single HTTP session context, leading to excessive memory usage that can ultimately render the application unavailable to legitimate users.
The technical flaw manifests through the improper handling of UI sessions within HTTP session boundaries, where attackers can establish numerous user interface sessions that consume memory resources at an accelerated rate. This behavior directly violates the principle of resource management and can be categorized under CWE-400, which addresses "Uncontrolled Resource Consumption" or "Resource Exhaustion." The vulnerability operates by exploiting the session management architecture of these enterprise applications, where each UI session consumes memory allocations that are not properly reclaimed or limited. When multiple UI sessions are created within a single HTTP session, the memory consumption grows exponentially rather than linearly, creating a condition where legitimate system resources become exhausted through malicious or accidental session proliferation.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to enterprise environments that rely on these IBM management platforms for critical business operations. The denial of service condition can lead to complete unavailability of the asset management and service desk functionalities, disrupting business processes that depend on these systems for tracking assets, managing service requests, and maintaining configuration data. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous in production environments where these systems are expected to maintain high availability and reliability. Attackers can leverage this weakness to perform sustained denial of service attacks that may require system restarts or manual intervention to restore normal operations. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially affecting business continuity and operational efficiency, especially in organizations where these platforms serve as central repositories for critical IT and asset management information.
The attack vector for this vulnerability is remote and requires no authentication, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by anyone with access to the network where these systems are exposed. The exploitation mechanism involves establishing multiple UI sessions within a single HTTP session, which creates a memory leak scenario that can be amplified through automated tools. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers "OS Cache Exhaustion" and represents a form of resource exhaustion attack that targets system memory resources. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit exposure of these systems to untrusted networks, deploy intrusion detection systems to monitor for unusual session creation patterns, and establish proper session management policies with appropriate timeouts and resource limits. Additionally, regular monitoring of system memory usage and implementing automated alerts for unusual memory consumption patterns can help detect exploitation attempts before they cause significant disruption. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper session management design and resource limitation controls in enterprise applications, particularly those handling sensitive business data and critical operational functions.