CVE-2015-4283 in Videoscape Policy Resource Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Cisco Videoscape Policy Resource Manager (PRM) 3.5.4 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (CPU and memory consumption, and TCP service outage) via (1) a SYN flood or (2) another type of TCP traffic flood, aka Bug IDs CSCuu35104 and CSCuu35128.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/10/2017
The Cisco Videoscape Policy Resource Manager version 3.5.4 contains a critical vulnerability that enables remote attackers to execute denial of service attacks through TCP traffic manipulation. This vulnerability affects the system's ability to handle incoming network connections and can result in significant operational disruption. The flaw manifests when the system receives malformed or excessive TCP traffic patterns that cause it to consume excessive CPU resources and memory allocation, ultimately leading to service unavailability. The vulnerability impacts both the system's processing capabilities and its network connectivity, creating a cascading effect that can bring down critical services. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it can be exploited remotely without requiring authentication, making it accessible to any attacker with network access to the affected system.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and connection handling mechanisms within the TCP stack processing components of the Cisco Videoscape PRM. When the system receives SYN flood attacks or other forms of TCP traffic flooding, it fails to properly manage the connection requests and resource allocation. The system's inability to effectively rate-limit or filter malicious traffic patterns causes it to allocate resources inefficiently, leading to memory exhaustion and CPU saturation. This behavior is consistent with TCP flood attack patterns that overwhelm connection handling mechanisms. The vulnerability specifically affects the system's TCP service layer where incoming connection requests are processed, and the lack of proper traffic shaping or rate limiting capabilities allows malicious actors to consume system resources at an unsustainable rate. The system's failure to properly implement connection state management and resource allocation controls creates this exploitable condition.
The operational impact of this vulnerability can be severe for organizations relying on Cisco Videoscape PRM for content delivery and policy management. When exploited, the vulnerability can cause complete service outages that affect content distribution, policy enforcement, and user access to services. The system may become unresponsive to legitimate traffic while simultaneously consuming all available resources, creating a situation where authorized users cannot access services while malicious actors continue to consume system resources. Network administrators may experience extended downtime as they attempt to diagnose and resolve the resource exhaustion issues. The vulnerability can also impact downstream systems that depend on the PRM for policy enforcement, potentially creating cascading failures throughout the network infrastructure. Organizations may face significant operational costs related to system recovery, service restoration, and potential business disruption during the attack period.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should include implementing network-level protections such as rate limiting, SYN cookies, and TCP traffic filtering to prevent malicious traffic patterns from reaching the vulnerable system. Network administrators should deploy firewalls and intrusion prevention systems with rules designed to detect and block TCP flood patterns targeting the affected system. The implementation of proper resource monitoring and alerting mechanisms can help identify when the system begins to consume excessive resources, allowing for quicker response times. Organizations should also consider implementing network segmentation to isolate the vulnerable system from critical network segments and reduce the potential impact of successful attacks. Cisco recommends upgrading to a patched version of the Videoscape Policy Resource Manager software, as this addresses the underlying TCP handling and resource management flaws. The mitigation approach should align with established cybersecurity frameworks such as those outlined in the CWE taxonomy for network protocol vulnerabilities and the ATT&CK framework's network infiltration techniques. Regular security assessments and network traffic monitoring should be implemented to detect potential exploitation attempts before they cause significant disruption to operations.