CVE-2013-3805 in MySQL Server
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the MySQL Server component in Oracle MySQL 5.5.30 and earlier and 5.6.10 allows remote authenticated users to affect availability via unknown vectors related to Prepared Statements.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/20/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-3805 resides within the MySQL Server component of Oracle MySQL database systems, specifically affecting versions 5.5.30 and earlier, as well as 5.6.10 and earlier releases. This issue represents a significant security concern as it allows authenticated remote attackers to potentially disrupt system availability through unspecified vectors associated with prepared statements functionality. The vulnerability's classification as unspecified indicates that the exact technical mechanisms remain undisclosed, which is common in early vulnerability disclosures where full details may not yet be publicly available. Prepared statements in MySQL serve as a performance optimization feature that allows database queries to be compiled once and executed multiple times with different parameters, making them a critical component of database operations.
The technical flaw manifests within the handling of prepared statements within the MySQL Server architecture, where the vulnerability enables attackers to manipulate the statement preparation and execution process in ways that could lead to system instability or resource exhaustion. This type of vulnerability falls under the category of availability impact, meaning that successful exploitation could result in denial of service conditions where legitimate users are unable to access database services. The fact that this affects authenticated users suggests that attackers must first establish valid credentials, though this does not necessarily limit the potential damage as authenticated access often provides more extensive privileges. The vulnerability's relationship to prepared statements indicates that the issue likely involves improper memory management, resource handling, or state validation during the preparation or execution phases of database queries.
From an operational perspective, the impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise the entire database infrastructure's reliability and integrity. When attackers can manipulate prepared statement handling to cause availability issues, they effectively gain the ability to perform denial of service attacks against database systems that are critical to business operations. This vulnerability particularly affects systems where database availability is paramount, such as financial services, healthcare applications, and e-commerce platforms where database downtime can result in significant financial losses and reputational damage. The threat landscape for this vulnerability is enhanced by the fact that it affects multiple minor versions of MySQL, indicating that organizations running these older versions across their infrastructure may be exposed to this risk, regardless of their specific deployment configurations.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to patched versions of MySQL where available, as the vulnerability affects multiple versions that have since been addressed through security updates. The remediation strategy should include comprehensive vulnerability scanning and assessment of all MySQL installations to identify systems running affected versions. Additionally, network segmentation and access controls should be enforced to limit the scope of potential exploitation, as the requirement for authentication means that internal network boundaries may not fully protect against this threat. Security monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual patterns in prepared statement usage that might indicate exploitation attempts, and regular security audits should verify that systems are running patched versions. This vulnerability also highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and following secure configuration practices, as the issue relates to fundamental database server functionality that is widely used across enterprise environments. The broader implications suggest that organizations should consider implementing additional layers of security monitoring and incident response procedures specifically targeting database availability threats, as this vulnerability demonstrates how seemingly routine database features can be weaponized for service disruption attacks.