CVE-2014-1474 in Best Practical
Summary
by MITRE
Algorithmic complexity vulnerability in Email::Address::List before 0.02, as used in RT 4.2.0 through 4.2.2, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (CPU consumption) via a string without an address.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/24/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-1474 represents a critical algorithmic complexity issue affecting the Email::Address::List Perl module version 0.01 and earlier. This flaw manifests within the Request Tracker (RT) ticketing system versions 4.2.0 through 4.2.2, creating a significant security risk that can be exploited by remote attackers to execute denial of service attacks. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of email address parsing logic when processing strings that lack valid email addresses, leading to excessive computational overhead during processing operations.
The technical flaw occurs when the Email::Address::List module encounters input strings that contain no actual email addresses or malformed address structures. Under normal circumstances, the module should gracefully handle such inputs by either rejecting them or processing them with minimal computational overhead. However, the vulnerable implementation contains inefficient parsing algorithms that exhibit quadratic or worse time complexity when processing these specific input patterns. This means that as the length of the input string increases, the CPU consumption grows at an exponential rate, making even relatively small malicious inputs capable of consuming excessive system resources.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple resource exhaustion, as it represents a classic example of a denial of service attack that can be executed with minimal effort by remote adversaries. Attackers can craft specially formatted strings containing no valid email addresses and submit them through RT's email processing mechanisms, causing the system to consume disproportionate CPU cycles. This can lead to complete system unresponsiveness, making it impossible for legitimate users to access or submit tickets. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects a widely used ticketing system that many organizations rely upon for critical business operations, potentially causing significant disruption to service availability and business continuity.
The root cause of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-770, which addresses the allocation of resources without proper limits or throttling, and can be mapped to ATT&CK technique T1499.1, specifically "Resource Exhaustion" within the Denial of Service category. Organizations utilizing RT 4.2.0 through 4.2.2 should immediately implement mitigations including upgrading to Email::Address::List version 0.02 or later, which contains the necessary fixes to address the algorithmic complexity issues. Additionally, implementing input validation and rate limiting on email processing components can help reduce the attack surface and prevent exploitation. System administrators should also consider deploying monitoring solutions to detect unusual CPU consumption patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts, as the vulnerability can be difficult to identify through conventional security scanning methods due to its subtle nature and the fact that it only becomes apparent during specific processing conditions.