CVE-2017-5729 in Dual-Band Wireless-AC
Summary
by MITRE
Frame replay vulnerability in Wi-Fi subsystem in Intel Dual-Band and Tri-Band Wireless-AC Products allows remote attacker to replay frames via channel-based man-in-the-middle.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/09/2019
The CVE-2017-5729 vulnerability represents a critical frame replay flaw within the Wi-Fi subsystem of Intel's dual-band and tri-band wireless-ac products, specifically affecting the authentication and key exchange processes. This vulnerability stems from inadequate frame validation mechanisms that fail to properly verify the authenticity and freshness of transmitted frames, creating a persistent security gap in wireless network communications. The flaw exists at the protocol level within the wireless access point firmware, where the system does not adequately implement sequence number checking or timestamp validation for incoming frames, allowing malicious actors to exploit this weakness through carefully crafted replay attacks.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the manipulation of wireless frame structures during the 802.11 authentication and association processes. An attacker positioned within the wireless coverage area can capture valid authentication frames and replay them to the target access point, effectively bypassing normal authentication sequences. This occurs because the wireless subsystem fails to maintain proper state tracking for frame sequences, allowing the same frame to be accepted multiple times without proper validation of its temporal context. The vulnerability specifically impacts the channel-based man-in-the-middle attack vector, where the attacker can leverage the frame replay capability to inject malicious frames into the wireless communication stream.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-5729 extends beyond simple unauthorized access to encompass broader network compromise and data integrity violations. Remote attackers can exploit this vulnerability to establish persistent unauthorized connections to wireless networks, potentially gaining access to sensitive corporate or personal data transmitted over the affected wireless infrastructure. The vulnerability creates a persistent backdoor that can be used for ongoing network surveillance, data exfiltration, and further attack progression. Additionally, the replay capability can be used to disrupt normal network operations by flooding the access point with repeated authentication requests, leading to potential denial of service conditions.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate firmware updates from Intel, as the flaw exists within the hardware-level wireless subsystem implementation. Network administrators should implement additional monitoring measures to detect unusual authentication patterns and frame replay activities within their wireless networks. The implementation of robust wireless intrusion detection systems becomes critical to identify and alert on suspicious frame replay activities. Organizations should also consider deploying network access control measures that can detect and prevent unauthorized wireless access points from connecting to their networks. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-310, which addresses cryptographic weaknesses, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1046 for network service scanning and T1566 for credential harvesting through wireless attacks. The remediation process requires coordinated patch management across all affected Intel wireless access point models, with particular attention to the specific firmware versions that contain the vulnerable frame validation logic.