CVE-2012-6062 in Wireshark
Summary
by MITRE
The dissect_rtcp_app function in epan/dissectors/packet-rtcp.c in the RTCP dissector in Wireshark 1.6.x before 1.6.12 and 1.8.x before 1.8.4 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (infinite loop) via a crafted packet.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/20/2021
The vulnerability described in CVE-2012-6062 represents a critical denial of service flaw within Wireshark's Real-time Transport Control Protocol (RTCP) dissector functionality. This issue affects versions of Wireshark prior to 1.6.12 and 1.8.4, specifically targeting the dissect_rtcp_app function located in epan/dissectors/packet-rtcp.c. The flaw enables remote attackers to craft malicious RTCP packets that can trigger an infinite loop during packet analysis, effectively rendering the network protocol analyzer unresponsive and unable to process additional traffic.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the improper handling of malformed RTCP application-specific packets within the dissect_rtcp_app function. When Wireshark encounters a specially crafted RTCP packet with malformed data structures, the dissector enters an infinite loop during the parsing process. This occurs because the function fails to implement proper bounds checking and validation mechanisms before processing packet contents, allowing attacker-controlled data to manipulate the parsing loop conditions. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-835, which specifically addresses infinite loops in software implementations, making it a direct example of improper loop control logic.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption, as it can be exploited by remote attackers to perform denial of service attacks against Wireshark users in network monitoring environments. Network security analysts and administrators who rely on Wireshark for traffic analysis and troubleshooting become vulnerable to attacks that can halt their monitoring capabilities entirely. This is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where Wireshark is used for network diagnostics, security incident response, and protocol analysis. The vulnerability can be exploited by sending a single malicious RTCP packet to a Wireshark instance, causing it to consume excessive CPU resources and potentially crash the application. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers network disruption through protocol manipulation.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2012-6062 primarily focus on upgrading to patched versions of Wireshark where the infinite loop has been resolved through proper input validation and bounds checking. Users should immediately update to Wireshark 1.6.12 or 1.8.4, which contain the necessary fixes to prevent the malformed packet processing from causing infinite loops. Additionally, network administrators should implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of Wireshark instances to untrusted networks. The fix typically involves adding proper validation checks and ensuring that loop conditions are properly bounded, preventing malicious data from manipulating the parsing logic. Organizations should also consider implementing intrusion detection systems that can identify and block suspicious RTCP packet patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts, thereby providing an additional layer of defense against this specific vulnerability type.