CVE-2013-4284 in Enterprise MRG
Summary
by MITRE
Cumin, as used in Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2.4, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (CPU and memory consumption) via a crafted Ajax update request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/08/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-4284 affects Cumin, a component within Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2.4, which is a high-performance messaging system designed for financial services and other mission-critical applications. This flaw represents a significant security concern as it enables remote attackers to execute denial of service attacks that consume excessive system resources. The vulnerability specifically targets the Ajax update request processing mechanism, which is commonly used for real-time data synchronization and user interface updates in web-based applications. When exploited, this vulnerability can lead to complete system unavailability and operational disruption for organizations relying on the messaging infrastructure.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and resource management within the Ajax update request handling code. Attackers can craft malicious requests that trigger excessive CPU utilization and memory consumption patterns, effectively causing the system to become unresponsive or crash entirely. This type of attack operates at the application layer and can be executed without requiring authentication or privileged access, making it particularly dangerous as it can be launched from anywhere on the internet. The flaw likely resides in the way the system processes and validates incoming Ajax requests, potentially failing to implement proper rate limiting, request size restrictions, or resource allocation controls that would prevent malicious requests from consuming disproportionate system resources.
The operational impact of CVE-2013-4284 extends beyond simple service disruption to encompass broader business continuity concerns for organizations using Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2.4. Financial institutions and trading platforms that depend on this messaging system for real-time transaction processing could face severe consequences including market data delays, transaction failures, and potential regulatory compliance issues. The vulnerability's ability to consume both CPU and memory resources simultaneously creates a multi-faceted attack vector that can overwhelm system capacity and potentially affect other applications running on the same infrastructure. Organizations may experience extended downtime while system administrators work to identify and resolve the resource exhaustion issues, leading to significant financial losses and reputational damage.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2013-4284 should focus on implementing robust input validation and resource management controls within the Ajax update request processing pipeline. System administrators should deploy rate limiting mechanisms to restrict the number of requests that can be processed within a given time period, effectively preventing resource exhaustion attacks from succeeding. Additionally, implementing proper request size limitations and memory allocation controls can help contain the impact of malicious requests. Organizations should also consider network-level protections such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems that can monitor for suspicious Ajax request patterns and automatically block or quarantine potentially malicious traffic. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which covers unspecified resource management issues, and can be classified under ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks. Regular security updates and patches from Red Hat should be implemented immediately to address this vulnerability, as the affected system components are critical for maintaining operational continuity in enterprise environments.