CVE-2013-1854 in Mac OS X Server
Summary
by MITRE
The Active Record component in Ruby on Rails 2.3.x before 2.3.18, 3.1.x before 3.1.12, and 3.2.x before 3.2.13 processes certain queries by converting hash keys to symbols, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service via crafted input to a where method.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/01/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-1854 represents a significant denial of service weakness within the Active Record component of Ruby on Rails frameworks. This flaw affects multiple versions including 2.3.x prior to 2.3.18, 3.1.x prior to 3.1.12, and 3.2.x prior to 3.2.13, creating a persistent security risk across a wide range of applications that rely on these framework versions. The vulnerability stems from how the system handles hash key conversion during query processing, specifically when the where method receives crafted input that exploits this conversion mechanism.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when Ruby on Rails processes database queries through the Active Record layer. During query construction, the framework converts hash keys to symbols as part of its internal processing pipeline. When malicious actors provide specially crafted input containing hash keys that trigger excessive symbol conversion or memory allocation, the system becomes vulnerable to resource exhaustion. This conversion process, while seemingly benign in normal operations, becomes exploitable when attackers manipulate the input to cause disproportionate memory consumption or CPU usage. The vulnerability operates at the intersection of object-oriented programming concepts and database abstraction layers, where the symbol conversion mechanism becomes a vector for resource exhaustion attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise entire application availability. Remote attackers can exploit this weakness to consume excessive system resources, leading to denial of service conditions that affect legitimate users and system performance. The attack vector is particularly dangerous because it requires minimal privileges and can be executed against any application using the vulnerable Rails versions. The vulnerability can be leveraged to create sustained resource exhaustion attacks that may require system restarts or manual intervention to resolve, making it a critical concern for web application security. Organizations running affected versions face potential business disruption and may experience cascading effects on related services that depend on the affected applications.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2013-1854 primarily involve upgrading to patched versions of Ruby on Rails where the vulnerability has been addressed. System administrators should prioritize immediate patching of all affected applications, ensuring that version 2.3.18, 3.1.12, or 3.2.13 and later are deployed across all production environments. Additionally, implementing input validation and sanitization measures can provide additional defense-in-depth layers, though these should not be considered primary solutions. Organizations should also consider implementing rate limiting and resource monitoring to detect unusual patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which categorizes it as an uncontrolled resource consumption issue, and can be mapped to ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for denial of service attacks. Security teams should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify all applications using affected Rails versions and establish monitoring procedures to detect potential exploitation attempts.