CVE-2017-17160 in ARXXXX
Summary
by MITRE
Huawei AR120-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, AR1200 V200R006C10, V200R006C13, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, AR1200-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, AR150 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, AR150-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, AR160 V200R006C10, V200R006C12, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, AR200 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, AR200-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, AR2200 V200R006C10, V200R006C13, V200R006C16PWE, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, AR2200-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, AR3200 V200R006C10, V200R006C11, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, AR3600 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, AR510 V200R006C12, V200R006C13, V200R006C15, V200R006C16, V200R006C17, V200R007C00, NetEngine16EX V200R006C10, V200R007C00, SRG1300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, SRG2300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, SRG3300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00 have a buffer overflow vulnerability due to incomplete range checks of the input data. An unauthenticated, remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending malicious IKE packets to the targeted device. An exploit could allow the attacker to cause the device to write out of bound and restart.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/08/2023
This vulnerability exists within Huawei's router and switch products including AR120-S, AR1200, AR150, AR160, AR200, AR2200, AR3200, AR3600, AR510, NetEngine16EX, SRG1300, SRG2300, and SRG3300 series. The issue stems from insufficient validation of input parameters during the processing of Internet Key Exchange (IKE) protocol packets. The vulnerability manifests as a buffer overflow condition that occurs when the device fails to properly validate the range of incoming data, particularly within the IKE packet handling mechanism. This flaw represents a critical security weakness that affects multiple hardware models across various firmware versions, indicating a widespread issue within Huawei's networking infrastructure.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability involves an unauthenticated remote attacker who can send specially crafted IKE packets to the affected device. When the device processes these malformed packets, the insufficient input validation allows the attacker to trigger a buffer overflow condition. This specific type of vulnerability maps to CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and more broadly to CWE-787, which covers out-of-bounds write vulnerabilities. The attack vector is particularly dangerous as it requires no authentication and can be executed remotely, making it accessible to any attacker with network access to the target device. The exploitation results in the device writing data beyond the allocated buffer boundaries, causing system instability and ultimately leading to device restart or crash.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple device disruption to potentially enabling more sophisticated attack scenarios. When the device restarts due to the buffer overflow, it creates opportunities for denial of service attacks that can compromise network availability and integrity. The restart condition may also provide attackers with opportunities to execute additional malicious activities or potentially escalate their privileges if the device's restart process contains additional vulnerabilities. From an ATT&CK perspective, this vulnerability aligns with techniques such as T1499.004 (Endpoint Termination) and T1070.004 (File Deletion) as the exploitation can cause device restarts and potentially allow for further system manipulation. The vulnerability affects network infrastructure devices that are critical for maintaining connectivity, making it particularly concerning for enterprise and service provider networks.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including network segmentation to isolate affected devices, disabling unnecessary IKE services where possible, and applying firmware updates from Huawei as soon as they become available. Network monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual traffic patterns or restart events that may indicate exploitation attempts. Security teams should also consider implementing intrusion detection systems that can identify malformed IKE packets and establish baseline network behavior to detect anomalies. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper input validation and bounds checking in network infrastructure devices, which should be addressed through comprehensive security reviews of all network components. Additionally, organizations should maintain updated vulnerability assessments and penetration testing programs to identify similar weaknesses in their networking infrastructure.