CVE-2017-1557 in WebSphere MQ
Summary
by MITRE
IBM WebSphere MQ 8.0 and 9.0 could allow an authenticated user with authority to send a specially crafted request that could cause a channel process to cease processing further requests. IBM X-Force ID: 131547.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/28/2021
IBM WebSphere MQ version 8.0 and 9.0 contains a vulnerability that affects the channel processing functionality within the messaging infrastructure. This flaw specifically targets authenticated users who possess sufficient privileges to send crafted requests to the messaging system. The vulnerability manifests when a malicious user exploits the channel process handling mechanism, causing the affected channel process to halt its operation and cease processing subsequent requests. This represents a significant availability concern within the messaging infrastructure, as it directly impacts the continuous operation of message queues and the reliability of message delivery services.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper handling of specially crafted requests within the channel process execution environment. When an authenticated user submits a malformed or specially constructed request, the channel process fails to properly validate or handle the input, leading to a state where the process becomes unresponsive or terminates unexpectedly. This behavior creates a denial of service condition that affects the availability of messaging services, as the channel process responsible for message transmission becomes non-functional. The vulnerability does not require administrative privileges beyond standard authentication, making it accessible to users who have legitimate access to the messaging system but possess the ability to send messages.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption, as it affects the core messaging capabilities of IBM WebSphere MQ installations. Organizations relying on these messaging services for critical business operations may experience message delivery failures, queue processing delays, and overall system unavailability during the period when affected channels are non-operational. The vulnerability particularly affects environments where high availability and continuous message processing are required, as the channel process failure can cascade through the messaging infrastructure, potentially affecting multiple message queues and applications dependent on the affected channels.
Security professionals should note that this vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which addresses unspecified errors in resource management, and potentially relates to CWE-665, concerning improper initialization of resources. From an attack perspective, this vulnerability maps to the attack technique T1499.004 from the MITRE ATT&CK framework, which covers the use of network denial of service attacks against applications. The vulnerability demonstrates how authenticated access can be leveraged to create service disruption, representing a common pattern in application-level denial of service scenarios where legitimate users can exploit implementation weaknesses to cause operational impact.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant IBM security patches and updates that address this specific vulnerability. System administrators should also consider implementing monitoring solutions that can detect abnormal channel process behavior and alert on potential exploitation attempts. Additional protective measures include restricting unnecessary user access to messaging channels, implementing proper access controls, and ensuring that authentication mechanisms are robust. Network segmentation and firewall rules can help limit the scope of potential exploitation by restricting access to messaging endpoints. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar weaknesses in the messaging infrastructure and ensure that all systems remain protected against known vulnerabilities.