CVE-2015-1899 in WebSphere Portal
Summary
by MITRE
IBM WebSphere Portal 8.5 through CF05 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (CPU consumption) via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/19/2022
IBM WebSphere Portal version 8.5 through cumulative fix 05 contains a vulnerability that enables remote attackers to execute a denial of service attack by consuming excessive cpu resources. This vulnerability falls under the category of resource exhaustion attacks where malicious actors can exploit unspecified vectors within the portal framework to trigger continuous cpu utilization. The flaw represents a critical security concern as it can render the portal service unavailable to legitimate users while consuming significant system resources. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates remotely without requiring authentication or specialized privileges, making it accessible to any attacker with network connectivity to the affected system. The unspecified vectors suggest that the vulnerability could be triggered through various attack paths including but not limited to malformed requests, specific parameter combinations, or crafted payloads targeting the portal's processing mechanisms. This type of vulnerability aligns with common attack patterns documented in the attack framework where resource exhaustion serves as a primary method for disrupting service availability. The impact extends beyond simple service disruption as excessive cpu consumption can cascade into broader system performance degradation affecting other applications running on the same infrastructure. From a compliance perspective, this vulnerability violates security standards that require robust protection against denial of service attacks, particularly in enterprise environments where system availability is critical for business operations. Organizations running IBM WebSphere Portal 8.5 should prioritize applying the cumulative fix 05 or equivalent patches to address this vulnerability. The issue demonstrates the importance of regular security updates and monitoring for known vulnerabilities in enterprise software platforms. Security teams should implement network monitoring solutions to detect unusual cpu utilization patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, implementing rate limiting and request validation mechanisms can provide additional defense in depth against similar resource exhaustion attacks targeting web portal applications. The vulnerability underscores the need for comprehensive security testing and vulnerability assessment practices to identify potential attack vectors before they can be exploited by malicious actors. Organizations should also consider implementing intrusion detection systems to monitor for suspicious network activity that could indicate attempts to exploit this or similar vulnerabilities in their web portal infrastructure.