CVE-2014-6450 in Junos
Summary
by MITRE
Juniper Junos OS before 11.4R12-S4, 12.1X44 before 12.1X44-D41, 12.1X46 before 12.1X46-D26, 12.1X47 before 12.1X47-D11/D15, 12.2 before 12.2R9, 12.2X50 before 12.2X50-D70, 12.3 before 12.3R8, 12.3X48 before 12.3X48-D10, 12.3X50 before 12.3X50-D42, 13.1 before 13.1R4-S3, 13.1X49 before 13.1X49-D42, 13.1X50 before 13.1X50-D30, 13.2 before 13.2R6, 13.2X51 before 13.2X51-D26, 13.2X52 before 13.2X52-D15, 13.3 before 13.3R3-S3, 14.1 before 14.1R3, 14.2 before 14.2R1, 15.1 before 15.1R1, and 15.1X49 before 15.1X49-D10, when configured for IPv6, allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (mbuf chain corruption and kernel panic) via crafted IPv6 packets.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/22/2022
This vulnerability affects Juniper Junos OS versions across multiple release branches including 11.4, 12.1X44, 12.1X46, 12.1X47, 12.2, 12.2X50, 12.3, 12.3X48, 12.3X50, 13.1, 13.1X49, 13.1X50, 13.2, 13.2X51, 13.2X52, 13.3, 14.1, 14.2, 15.1, and 15.1X49. The flaw specifically manifests when devices are configured to process IPv6 traffic, making it a critical concern for network infrastructure running these vulnerable software versions. The vulnerability is classified as a denial of service condition that can lead to system instability and complete service interruption.
The technical root cause involves improper handling of IPv6 packet processing within the Junos OS kernel, specifically related to mbuf chain corruption during packet assembly operations. When crafted malicious IPv6 packets are received by vulnerable devices, they trigger a kernel panic condition that results in system crashes and requires manual intervention to restore normal operation. This represents a classic buffer handling vulnerability where malformed packet data causes memory management structures to become corrupted, leading to system-wide failures. The vulnerability maps to CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and also aligns with CWE-125, indicating out-of-bounds read conditions in memory operations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe for network infrastructure environments as it allows remote attackers to disrupt network services without requiring authentication or privileged access. Network administrators face the challenge of maintaining service availability when attackers can trigger kernel panics through simple network traffic manipulation. The vulnerability affects devices that process IPv6 traffic, which is increasingly common in modern network deployments, making the attack surface particularly broad. Organizations with multiple vulnerable devices across their network infrastructure face cascading failures that can impact large portions of their network connectivity simultaneously.
Mitigation strategies should prioritize immediate patching of all affected Junos OS versions to the recommended secure releases, particularly focusing on the specific version ranges mentioned in the CVE description. Network administrators should implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure to potentially compromised devices while patches are deployed. Monitoring for unusual network traffic patterns or system instability can help detect exploitation attempts, though the vulnerability is designed to be undetectable during normal operation. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks, with potential lateral movement opportunities through compromised network infrastructure. Organizations should also consider implementing IPv6 traffic filtering rules to limit exposure where immediate patching is not feasible, though this approach provides only temporary protection against the underlying kernel-level flaw.