CVE-2018-18311 in Enterprise Manager Base Platform
Summary
by MITRE
Perl before 5.26.3 and 5.28.x before 5.28.1 has a buffer overflow via a crafted regular expression that triggers invalid write operations.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/10/2024
This vulnerability exists in perl versions prior to 5.26.3 and 5.28.1, representing a critical buffer overflow flaw that can be triggered through maliciously crafted regular expressions. The issue stems from improper bounds checking during the processing of regular expression patterns, allowing attackers to manipulate memory layout through carefully constructed input that exceeds allocated buffer boundaries. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-121 category of stack-based buffer overflow, where insufficient validation of input data leads to memory corruption during regular expression compilation and execution phases. The flaw specifically impacts perl's internal regex engine which handles pattern matching operations across various system components that rely on perl for text processing and manipulation tasks.
The operational impact of CVE-2018-18311 extends beyond simple denial of service scenarios to potentially enable arbitrary code execution when the vulnerable perl interpreter processes untrusted input through regular expression operations. Attackers can craft malicious regex patterns that cause the perl interpreter to write data beyond allocated memory regions, potentially corrupting adjacent memory locations including stack canaries, return addresses, or other critical program state information. This vulnerability is particularly dangerous in web applications, system administration tools, and any environment where perl processes user-supplied input through regular expression matching functions. The exploitability of this flaw increases significantly when perl is used in conjunction with web frameworks, database systems, or network services that perform extensive text processing operations.
Systems utilizing perl versions affected by CVE-2018-18311 face substantial risk across multiple attack vectors including web application exploitation, command injection scenarios, and privilege escalation opportunities. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter usage, particularly when perl is employed in shell contexts or when applications execute perl scripts with elevated privileges. Organizations running vulnerable perl installations should immediately implement patch management procedures to upgrade to perl 5.26.3 or 5.28.1, as these releases contain fixes for the buffer overflow conditions in the regex engine. Additionally, input validation measures should be strengthened to sanitize all regular expression patterns before processing, and runtime protections such as address space layout randomization and stack canaries should be enabled to mitigate potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date software dependencies in security-sensitive environments where perl is used for text processing operations.