CVE-2013-4255 in Enterprise Mrg
Summary
by MITRE
The policy definition evaluator in Condor 7.5.4, 8.0.0, and earlier does not properly handle attributes in a (1) PREEMPT, (2) SUSPEND, (3) CONTINUE, (4) WANT_VACATE, or (5) KILL policy that evaluate to an Unconfigured, Undefined, or Error state, which allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service (condor_startd exit) via a crafted job.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/08/2022
The vulnerability described in CVE-2013-4255 affects Condor versions 7.5.4, 8.0.0, and earlier, specifically targeting the policy definition evaluator component within the condor_startd daemon. This flaw represents a critical denial of service vulnerability that can be exploited by remotely authenticated users through carefully crafted job submissions. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of attribute evaluations within specific policy contexts including PREEMPT, SUSPEND, CONTINUE, WANT_VACATE, and KILL policies. When these policies encounter attributes that evaluate to Unconfigured, Undefined, or Error states, the system fails to gracefully manage these conditions, leading to unexpected termination of the condor_startd process.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability resides in how Condor processes policy evaluations during job lifecycle management operations. The policy definition evaluator does not implement proper error handling mechanisms for attribute states that are not properly configured or have encountered errors during evaluation. This failure manifests when the system attempts to process job attributes that have not been properly initialized or have encountered runtime errors, causing the condor_startd daemon to exit unexpectedly. The flaw operates at the policy evaluation layer where attribute resolution occurs, making it particularly dangerous as it can be triggered through legitimate job submission processes.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability creates significant disruption in distributed computing environments that rely on Condor for job scheduling and resource management. The remote authenticated nature of the exploit means that any user with valid credentials can potentially trigger the denial of service condition, effectively taking down the targeted condor_startd daemon and rendering the associated compute resources unavailable. This impacts not only the immediate job execution capabilities but also the broader cluster management functionality, as the daemon restarts may not be immediate or automatic, leading to extended service outages and job queue disruptions.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-248, which addresses "Uncaught Exception" in software systems, and can be categorized under ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for "Endpoint Denial of Service" as it specifically targets endpoint services through malformed input. Organizations using Condor for high availability computing clusters face significant risk as this vulnerability can be exploited without requiring special privileges beyond legitimate authentication. The impact extends beyond simple service interruption to potentially affect job scheduling reliability and cluster stability, particularly in environments where multiple users submit jobs simultaneously.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate patch application to versions of Condor that address this specific policy evaluation handling issue. Organizations should also implement monitoring for abnormal condor_startd process termination and establish automated restart procedures to minimize service impact. Network segmentation and access control measures can help limit the potential exploitation surface by restricting unauthorized access to the Condor submission interfaces. Additionally, implementing proper attribute validation and configuration management processes can help prevent the conditions that lead to Unconfigured or Error states in policy attributes, thereby reducing the likelihood of exploitation.