CVE-2017-17291 in ARXXXX
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 V200R006C10, 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, V200R006C16, 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, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, DP300 V500R002C00, MAX PRESENCE V100R001C00, NetEngine16EX V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, RP200 V500R002C00, V600R006C00, SRG1300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, SRG2300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R007C02, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, SRG3300 V200R006C10, V200R007C00, V200R008C20, V200R008C30, TE30 V100R001C02, V100R001C10, V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TE40 V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TE50 V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TE60 V100R001C01, V100R001C10, V500R002C00, V600R006C00, TP3106 V100R002C00, TP3206 V100R002C00, V100R002C10 have a memory leak vulnerability. An authenticated, local attacker may craft a specific XML file to the affected products. Due to not free the memory to parse the XML file, successful exploit will result in memory leak of the affected products.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/08/2023
This vulnerability represents a critical memory management flaw in Huawei networking equipment across multiple product lines including AR120-S, AR1200, AR150, AR160, AR200, AR2200, AR3200, AR3600, AR510, DP300, MAX PRESENCE, NetEngine16EX, RP200, SRG1300, SRG2300, SRG3300, TE30, TE40, TE50, TE60, TP3106, and TP3206 devices. The vulnerability stems from insufficient memory deallocation during XML file parsing operations, creating a persistent memory leak condition that can degrade system performance and potentially lead to system instability. This flaw exists within the XML parsing engine of these network appliances, where the software fails to properly release allocated memory resources after processing XML content, resulting in gradual memory exhaustion over time. The vulnerability is classified as a memory leak under CWE-401, which specifically addresses the failure to release memory resources after use, making it a direct violation of proper memory management practices and a common vector for denial of service attacks.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires an authenticated local attacker who can craft and upload specific XML files to the affected devices. This attack vector aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for XML external entity processing and T1499.004 for network denial of service. When the affected system processes these malicious XML files, the parser allocates memory for parsing operations but fails to properly free this memory afterward, leading to progressive memory consumption. The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple resource exhaustion as it can cause system instability, application crashes, and potentially complete service disruption. The memory leak occurs in the context of XML processing within the device's operating system, making it particularly dangerous because XML parsing is a common operation in network management and configuration processes. The vulnerability affects numerous Huawei networking platforms, indicating a widespread issue in the vendor's software implementation across different hardware architectures and firmware versions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability poses significant risks to network infrastructure reliability and availability. Network administrators may observe gradual performance degradation, increased system response times, and potential complete system failures as memory resources become exhausted. This vulnerability particularly affects enterprise and carrier-grade networking equipment where continuous uptime is critical, potentially leading to service disruptions that can impact business operations and customer satisfaction. The memory leak can accumulate over time, making the system increasingly unstable and prone to crashes, which can be exploited by attackers to perform sustained denial of service attacks. The vulnerability's authenticated nature means that it requires legitimate access credentials, but this access can be obtained through various attack vectors including credential theft, social engineering, or exploitation of other vulnerabilities, making it a serious concern for network security. The widespread nature of affected products across multiple Huawei networking families suggests that this vulnerability could impact a large number of network installations, potentially affecting critical infrastructure components.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate firmware updates from Huawei to address the memory management flaw. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to affected devices and restrict XML file upload capabilities where possible. Regular monitoring of system memory usage and performance metrics can help detect early signs of memory exhaustion before complete system failure occurs. Network administrators should also consider implementing access controls to limit local administrative access to these devices and enforce strong authentication mechanisms. Additionally, organizations should develop incident response procedures specifically addressing memory leak vulnerabilities and consider implementing automated alerting systems that can notify administrators when memory usage exceeds predefined thresholds. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper memory management in embedded systems and the need for comprehensive security testing of network equipment firmware. Security teams should also conduct regular vulnerability assessments of their network infrastructure to identify and remediate similar issues before they can be exploited by malicious actors.