CVE-2015-5175 in CXF Fediz
Summary
by MITRE
Application plugins in Apache CXF Fediz before 1.1.3 and 1.2.x before 1.2.1 allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/08/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-5175 affects Apache CXF Fediz versions prior to 1.1.3 and 1.2.x versions before 1.2.1, representing a critical denial of service flaw within the application plugin architecture. This issue specifically targets the federated identity management capabilities provided by Apache CXF Fediz, which serves as a federation framework for implementing security token services and identity providers within enterprise applications. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of malformed or malicious input within the plugin processing mechanisms, creating a pathway for remote attackers to exploit the system's resource management and processing functions.
The technical flaw manifests in the way Apache CXF Fediz handles plugin initialization and execution sequences, where insufficient validation and sanitization of input parameters allows attackers to craft specially malformed requests that trigger resource exhaustion or infinite processing loops. This vulnerability operates at the application layer and can be exploited through network-based attacks without requiring authentication, making it particularly dangerous in environments where the federated identity services are exposed to untrusted networks. The flaw essentially creates a condition where legitimate service requests may be disrupted or completely blocked due to the malicious plugin interactions consuming all available system resources or causing the application to crash.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-5175 extends beyond simple service disruption, potentially affecting business continuity and user access to enterprise applications that depend on federated identity services. Organizations utilizing affected Apache CXF Fediz versions may experience complete denial of service for their identity management infrastructure, leading to cascading effects throughout their application ecosystem where users cannot authenticate or access protected resources. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-400, which categorizes weaknesses related to resource exhaustion, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks. The impact is particularly severe in high-availability environments where the federated identity services are critical components of the overall security architecture.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of affected Apache CXF Fediz installations to versions 1.1.3 or 1.2.1 and later, which contain the necessary code modifications to properly validate and sanitize plugin inputs. Network-level protections should include implementing rate limiting and input filtering mechanisms at firewalls and load balancers to detect and block suspicious plugin-related requests before they reach the vulnerable application components. Additionally, organizations should conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify all instances of affected software within their infrastructure and implement monitoring solutions to detect potential exploitation attempts. The fix addresses the core issue by introducing proper input validation routines and resource management controls that prevent malicious plugin interactions from consuming excessive system resources or causing application instability.