CVE-2011-2616 in Web Browser
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in Opera before 11.50 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption) via unknown content on a web page, as demonstrated by test262.ecmascript.org.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/13/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-2616 represents a memory consumption issue affecting Opera web browsers prior to version 11.50. This flaw falls under the category of denial of service attacks where malicious web content can trigger excessive memory usage within the browser application. The vulnerability was demonstrated through content hosted on test262.ecmascript.org, which served as a proof of concept showing how specific web page elements could cause the browser to consume increasing amounts of system memory until the application becomes unresponsive or crashes. The unspecified nature of the vulnerability indicates that the exact technical mechanism triggering the memory exhaustion was not fully disclosed in the initial reporting, though it likely involved improper memory management or handling of specific web page constructs. This type of vulnerability is particularly concerning as it can be exploited remotely without requiring user interaction beyond visiting a malicious website, making it a significant threat to browser security and user experience.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability likely involved manipulation of JavaScript or HTML elements that caused the browser engine to allocate memory in an uncontrolled manner. Such issues typically arise from inadequate input validation or memory management routines within the browser's rendering engine, where specific combinations of web page elements trigger memory allocation patterns that grow exponentially or fail to properly release allocated memory. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic case of resource exhaustion where the browser's memory management system cannot properly handle the malicious content, leading to progressive memory consumption that eventually exhausts available system resources. This behavior aligns with common patterns found in buffer overflow and memory leak vulnerabilities, though the specific implementation details remain unspecified in the CVE description.
The operational impact of CVE-2011-2616 extends beyond simple browser instability to potentially affect system performance and user productivity. When exploited, this vulnerability allows remote attackers to consume system resources without requiring any special privileges or user interaction, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users may unknowingly visit compromised websites. The memory consumption pattern could lead to complete browser crashes, system slowdowns, or even complete system lockups depending on the severity of memory exhaustion. This vulnerability represents a significant security concern for organizations relying on Opera browsers, as it provides a vector for attackers to disrupt normal user operations and potentially gain further access to systems through related attacks. The remote exploitation capability means that attackers can target users from anywhere on the internet without requiring physical access to the target system.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily focus on immediate browser updates to version 11.50 or later, which would contain the necessary patches to address the memory consumption issue. Organizations should implement comprehensive patch management procedures to ensure all Opera browsers are updated promptly, as this vulnerability affects multiple operating systems including windows, macos, and linux platforms. Network administrators should consider implementing web filtering solutions to block access to known malicious domains that may host exploit content, though this approach is less effective against zero-day exploitation. Browser security configurations should be reviewed to ensure that automatic updates are enabled and that users are not bypassing security features. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of regular security assessments and penetration testing to identify similar memory management issues in other browser components. From a compliance perspective, this vulnerability would likely trigger requirements under various security frameworks including iso 27001 and pci dss, which mandate regular vulnerability assessments and prompt remediation of identified security issues. Security monitoring should include detection of unusual memory consumption patterns that could indicate exploitation of this vulnerability or similar resource exhaustion attacks.