CVE-2017-20012 in INTEREST Security Scanner
Summary
by MITRE • 03/29/2022
** UNSUPPORTED WHEN ASSIGNED ** A vulnerability classified as problematic has been found in WEKA INTEREST Security Scanner up to 1.8. Affected is Stresstest Scheme Handler which leads to a denial of service. The attack needs to be approached locally. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. NOTE: This vulnerability only affects products that are no longer supported by the maintainer.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/06/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-20012 represents a denial of service weakness within the WEKA INTEREST Security Scanner version 1.8 and earlier. This security flaw specifically impacts the Stresstest Scheme Handler component, which is designed to evaluate system resilience under load conditions. The vulnerability classification as problematic indicates significant security implications despite its local attack requirement, making it a concerning issue for organizations relying on this deprecated security tool. The fact that this vulnerability has been publicly disclosed and is potentially exploitable underscores the urgency for affected parties to address this weakness.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper handling within the Stresstest Scheme Handler module, which likely fails to properly validate or process input data during stress testing operations. This flaw creates an opportunity for local attackers to manipulate the system behavior and cause service disruption. The denial of service condition manifests when the handler encounters malformed or specially crafted input that triggers unexpected behavior in the security scanner's processing mechanisms. The vulnerability's local attack vector suggests that exploitation requires physical access or administrative privileges on the target system, though this does not diminish its potential impact on system availability and operational integrity.
From an operational standpoint, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations that may still be using unsupported versions of the WEKA INTEREST Security Scanner. The denial of service condition directly impacts the availability of security scanning capabilities, potentially leaving systems vulnerable to other threats during the period when the scanner is unavailable. The local attack requirement does not limit the impact, as local privilege escalation or other attack vectors could potentially be leveraged to achieve local access. This vulnerability particularly affects environments where security scanning is critical for compliance monitoring or operational security, as the disruption could prevent timely detection of security issues.
The security implications extend beyond immediate service disruption to encompass broader operational resilience concerns. Organizations maintaining legacy security tools face increased risk profiles when vulnerabilities in unsupported software remain unpatched. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which covers unspecified errors in resource management, and could potentially map to ATT&CK technique T1499 for denial of service attacks. The exploitation of this vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining current security tool versions and implementing proper lifecycle management practices. Organizations should prioritize migrating away from unsupported products and establishing robust patch management processes to prevent similar vulnerabilities from compromising security infrastructure.
The public disclosure of this exploit creates additional operational challenges for affected organizations, as threat actors may actively target systems with this vulnerability. The unsupported status of the affected product means no official patches or security updates are available from the vendor, leaving organizations with limited remediation options. This situation highlights the critical importance of maintaining software support contracts and implementing comprehensive inventory management to identify and address deprecated security tools. Organizations should consider implementing compensating controls such as network segmentation, monitoring for unusual behavior patterns, and alternative scanning methodologies to maintain security posture despite the presence of this vulnerability in their environment.