CVE-2017-8915 in HANA XS
Summary
by MITRE
sinopia, as used in SAP HANA XS 1.00 and 2.00, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (assertion failure and service crash) by pushing a package with a filename containing a $ (dollar sign) or % (percent) character, aka SAP Security Note 2407694.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/25/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-8915 affects sinopia package manager when integrated with SAP HANA XS 1.00 and 2.00 environments, representing a critical denial of service weakness that can be exploited remotely by malicious actors. This flaw specifically targets the package handling mechanism within the SAP HANA XS platform, where sinopia serves as the underlying package management system. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and sanitization processes that fail to properly handle special characters in package filenames, creating a pathway for attackers to disrupt service availability.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an attacker uploads a package with a filename containing either a dollar sign or percent character. These special characters trigger an assertion failure within the sinopia package manager implementation, causing the service to crash and resulting in a complete denial of service condition. The flaw exists at the parsing and validation layer of the package management system where the software fails to properly sanitize or reject filenames containing these specific characters. This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-170, which addresses issues related to improper handling of input that contains potentially dangerous characters, and represents a classic example of a buffer overflow or assertion failure condition.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-8915 extends beyond simple service disruption as it can severely affect business continuity within SAP HANA environments that rely on package management for application deployment and maintenance. Organizations utilizing SAP HANA XS 1.00 and 2.00 platforms face significant risk of unauthorized service interruption, potentially leading to production system downtime, loss of productivity, and potential data access issues. The vulnerability affects the core package management functionality, which means that legitimate package installations and updates could be blocked or interrupted, creating cascading operational problems throughout the system. This weakness can be particularly damaging in enterprise environments where SAP HANA systems support critical business applications and data processing workflows.
SAP addressed this vulnerability through Security Note 2407694, which provides specific patches and configuration recommendations to mitigate the risk. Organizations should implement immediate remediation measures including applying the relevant security patches, implementing proper input validation controls, and configuring the sinopia package manager to reject or sanitize filenames containing special characters. Network-level controls such as intrusion detection systems and firewall rules can provide additional defense-in-depth measures. The mitigation strategy should also include monitoring for suspicious package upload activities and implementing automated scanning for potentially malicious package content. Security teams should consider implementing application whitelisting policies and restricting package upload permissions to authorized personnel only. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation and sanitization in package management systems, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1190 for exploit public-facing application and T1499 for endpoint disruption, making it a critical concern for enterprise security operations and compliance requirements.