CVE-2016-0379 in WebSphere MQ
Summary
by MITRE
IBM WebSphere MQ 7.5 before 7.5.0.7 and 8.0 before 8.0.0.5 mishandles protocol flows, which allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service (channel outage) by leveraging queue-manager rights.
Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/26/2019
IBM WebSphere MQ versions 7.5 before 7.5.0.7 and 8.0 before 8.0.0.5 contain a critical protocol flow handling vulnerability that enables authenticated remote attackers to trigger channel outages resulting in denial of service conditions. This vulnerability resides in the message queue management system's protocol processing logic where improper handling of communication flows leads to system instability. The flaw specifically affects the queue manager's ability to maintain channel integrity during legitimate communication sessions, allowing malicious actors with queue manager rights to exploit this weakness and disrupt service availability. The vulnerability operates at the protocol level within the messaging infrastructure, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by users who already possess legitimate authentication credentials and queue manager privileges. According to CWE classification, this represents a weakness in protocol flow handling that falls under CWE-248, which deals with exposure of unintended alternate channel. The attack vector requires remote access with authenticated credentials, meaning that an attacker must first establish legitimate connection to the system before exploiting this vulnerability. The operational impact extends beyond simple service disruption as channel outages can cascade through interconnected systems that rely on WebSphere MQ for message passing, potentially affecting business continuity and data flow integrity across enterprise networks. The vulnerability demonstrates a fundamental flaw in how the system processes protocol communications when handling legitimate user sessions that are authorized to manage queue resources. Organizations running affected versions of IBM WebSphere MQ should immediately implement the vendor-provided patches to address this weakness and prevent potential exploitation by malicious actors. The remediation process involves upgrading to the patched versions of IBM WebSphere MQ where the protocol flow handling has been corrected to properly manage channel states during communication sessions. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 which covers network denial of service attacks, specifically targeting the availability aspect of the CIA triad. The flaw represents a significant security concern for enterprise messaging systems where maintaining continuous availability is critical for business operations and data integrity. The vulnerability's impact is amplified by its ability to affect the core messaging infrastructure that many enterprise applications depend upon for reliable communication between distributed systems. Security teams should prioritize this vulnerability in their risk assessment frameworks as it provides a pathway for authenticated users to cause service disruption that could potentially impact mission-critical applications relying on WebSphere MQ for message queuing operations. The remediation process requires careful planning to ensure that patch deployment does not disrupt existing messaging operations while addressing the underlying protocol flow handling weakness that enables the denial of service condition.