CVE-2015-5162 in OpenStack
Summary
by MITRE
The image parser in OpenStack Cinder 7.0.2 and 8.0.0 through 8.1.1; Glance before 11.0.1 and 12.0.0; and Nova before 12.0.4 and 13.0.0 does not properly limit qemu-img calls, which might allow attackers to cause a denial of service (memory and disk consumption) via a crafted disk image.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/22/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-5162 represents a critical denial of service flaw affecting multiple OpenStack components including Cinder, Glance, and Nova services. This issue stems from improper input validation within the image parsing mechanisms of these cloud infrastructure components, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit resource exhaustion vulnerabilities through crafted disk images. The affected versions span across OpenStack Cinder 7.0.2 and 8.0.0 through 8.1.1, Glance versions prior to 11.0.1 and 12.0.0, and Nova versions before 12.0.4 and 13.0.0, indicating a widespread impact across core cloud storage and compute services.
The technical flaw manifests in the image parser implementations where qemu-img commands are executed without proper parameter limitations or input sanitization. When processing maliciously crafted disk images, the system fails to enforce adequate resource constraints on the qemu-img utility calls, allowing attackers to manipulate the parsing process to consume excessive system resources. This improper handling creates a scenario where the image processing pipeline can be exploited to trigger memory exhaustion and disk space consumption, effectively rendering the affected services unavailable to legitimate users. The vulnerability operates at the intersection of improper input validation and resource management, creating a condition where untrusted image data can be used to perform resource-intensive operations without adequate bounds checking.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to encompass potential system instability and resource exhaustion across cloud environments. Attackers can leverage this flaw to consume substantial memory and disk resources, potentially leading to cascading failures in cloud infrastructure where multiple services depend on the affected components. The vulnerability's exploitation can result in complete denial of service for storage and compute operations, affecting tenant workloads and potentially compromising the overall availability of cloud services. From an attacker's perspective, this represents a low-effort, high-impact method for causing service disruption, as the attack requires only the creation of a malicious disk image rather than sophisticated exploitation techniques.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2015-5162 should focus on implementing proper input validation and resource limiting mechanisms within the image parsing pipelines of affected OpenStack components. Organizations should upgrade to patched versions of Cinder, Glance, and Nova where available, as these releases contain the necessary fixes for proper qemu-img command parameter validation. System administrators should implement additional monitoring and resource allocation controls to detect and prevent abnormal resource consumption patterns during image processing operations. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-770, which addresses allocation of resources without limits or with inadequate limits, and corresponds to ATT&CK technique T1499.001 for network denial of service attacks. Security teams should also consider implementing image scanning and validation processes that can detect potentially malicious disk images before they are processed by the affected services, providing an additional layer of defense against resource exhaustion attacks.