CVE-2017-17256 in AR120-S
Summary
by MITRE
Huawei AR120-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR1200 V200R006C10, V200R006C13, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR1200-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR150 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR150-S V200R006C10SPC300, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR160 V200R006C10, V200R006C12, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR200 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR200-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR2200 V200R006C10, V200R006C13, V200R006C16PWE, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR2200-S V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR3200 V200R006C10, V200R006C11, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R007C02, V200R008C00, V200R008C10, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, AR3600 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C01, V200R008C20, AR510 V200R006C10, V200R006C12, V200R006C13, V200R006C15, V200R006C16, V200R006C17, V200R007C00SPC180T, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, DP300 V500R002C00, IPS Module V100R001C10SPC200, V100R001C20, V100R001C30, V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, NGFW Module V100R001C10SPC200, V100R001C20, V100R001C30, V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R002C00, V500R002C10, NIP6300 V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, NIP6600 V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, NIP6800 V500R001C50, NetEngine16EX V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, RSE6500 V500R002C00, SRG1300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, SRG2300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, SRG3300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, SVN5600 V200R003C00, V200R003C10, SVN5800 V200R003C00, V200R003C10, SVN5800-C V200R003C00, V200R003C10, SeMG9811 V300R001C01, Secospace USG6300 V100R001C10, V100R001C20, V100R001C30, V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, Secospace USG6500 V100R001C10, V100R001C20, V100R001C30, V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, Secospace USG6600 V100R001C00SPC200, V100R001C10, V100R001C20, V100R001C30, V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, V500R001C60, TE30 V100R001C02, V100R001C10, V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TE40 V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TE50 V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TE60 V100R001C01, V100R001C10, V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TP3106 V100R002C00, TP3206 V100R002C00, V100R002C10, USG6000V V500R001C20, USG9500 V500R001C00, V500R001C20, V500R001C30, V500R001C50, USG9520 V300R001C01, V300R001C20, USG9560 V300R001C01, V300R001C20, USG9580 V300R001C01, V300R001C20, VP9660 V500R002C00, V500R002C10, ViewPoint 8660 V100R008C03, ViewPoint 9030 V100R011C02 has a memory leak vulnerability in H323 protocol. An unauthenticated, remote attacker could craft malformed packets and send the packets to the affected products. Due to insufficient verification of the packets, successful exploit could cause a memory leak and eventual denial of service (DoS) condition.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/07/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-17256 affects multiple Huawei network equipment models including AR series routers, firewalls, and multimedia communication devices. This memory leak vulnerability specifically resides within the H323 protocol implementation, which is commonly used for voice and video communication over IP networks. The flaw manifests when the system fails to properly validate incoming H323 packets, allowing an unauthenticated remote attacker to exploit this weakness through crafted malformed packets. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-401 as a weakness related to improper handling of memory allocation and deallocation, which directly aligns with the observed behavior of memory exhaustion leading to system instability.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability follows patterns consistent with the attack techniques described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the T1210 technique for exploitation of remote services. An attacker can send specially crafted H323 packets to the affected devices without requiring authentication, making this a particularly dangerous vulnerability given the widespread deployment of Huawei network equipment in enterprise and telecommunications environments. The memory leak occurs because the system does not properly validate packet structures before processing them, leading to gradual memory consumption over time. This progressive memory degradation eventually results in a denial of service condition where the device becomes unresponsive or crashes entirely.
From an operational perspective, the impact of this vulnerability extends across multiple Huawei product lines that implement H323 protocol functionality, including but not limited to USG firewalls, AR routers, and multimedia communication devices such as TE series video conferencing endpoints. The vulnerability affects both hardware and software versions across various product families, indicating a systemic issue within Huawei's protocol handling implementation. Network administrators face significant operational challenges as this vulnerability can be exploited remotely without any authentication requirements, potentially allowing attackers to disrupt critical communication services or cause complete service outages. The memory leak progression suggests that even a single malicious packet could initiate a cascading failure that eventually leads to complete system compromise.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2017-17256 should focus on immediate network segmentation and access control measures to limit exposure of vulnerable devices to untrusted networks. Organizations should implement network monitoring to detect anomalous H323 traffic patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. The recommended approach includes applying official Huawei firmware updates that contain patches addressing the memory validation issues in H323 protocol processing. Additionally, network administrators should consider implementing firewall rules that restrict H323 traffic to trusted sources only, and disable H323 functionality on devices where it is not required. This vulnerability also highlights the importance of regular security assessments and vulnerability management programs, particularly for critical network infrastructure components that handle real-time communication protocols. The attack surface for this vulnerability spans across various network security domains including network access control, endpoint protection, and network monitoring systems, making comprehensive mitigation strategies essential for maintaining operational continuity.