CVE-2019-25599 in Backup Key Recovery
Summary
by MITRE • 03/22/2026
Backup Key Recovery 2.2.4 contains a denial of service vulnerability that allows local attackers to crash the application by supplying an excessively long string in the Name field. Attackers can paste a buffer of 300 or more characters into the Name field during registration to trigger a crash when submitting the form.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/23/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-25599 resides within the Backup Key Recovery application version 2.2.4, representing a classic buffer overflow condition that manifests as a denial of service attack. This weakness occurs during the registration process when the application fails to properly validate input length in the Name field, creating an exploitable condition that can be leveraged by local attackers to disrupt system operations. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it requires minimal technical expertise to exploit, making it accessible to a wide range of threat actors who may not possess advanced penetration testing capabilities.
The technical flaw stems from inadequate input validation mechanisms within the application's form processing logic. When a user supplies a string exceeding 300 characters in the Name field during registration, the application's internal buffer handling routines fail to properly manage the excessive input length. This condition typically results from the application using fixed-length buffers without implementing proper bounds checking or input sanitization procedures. The flaw aligns with CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and represents a common vulnerability pattern found in legacy applications that were not designed with modern security principles in mind. The vulnerability operates at the application layer, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited without requiring elevated privileges or network access.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple application disruption, as it can potentially compromise the availability of critical backup recovery services. Local attackers can exploit this weakness to repeatedly crash the application, leading to service degradation or complete unavailability of the backup system. This disruption can have cascading effects on system administrators who rely on the backup recovery functionality for disaster recovery operations, potentially leading to data loss incidents if backups become unavailable during critical recovery scenarios. The vulnerability also demonstrates poor input validation practices that could indicate broader security weaknesses within the application's codebase, making it a potential entry point for more sophisticated attacks. From an attack framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to the attack technique of service disruption and can be categorized under the MITRE ATT&CK framework's T1499 category for network denial of service attacks.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-25599 should focus on implementing proper input validation and bounds checking mechanisms within the application's registration form processing. The most effective immediate solution involves enforcing maximum character limits on the Name field to prevent buffer overflows, typically restricting input to a reasonable length such as 100-150 characters. Additionally, developers should implement proper string handling routines that include bounds checking and dynamic buffer allocation when processing user input. The application should also incorporate robust error handling mechanisms that gracefully manage malformed input rather than allowing crashes to occur. Security patches should be deployed immediately to address this vulnerability, and system administrators should conduct thorough code reviews to identify similar input validation weaknesses throughout the application. Organizations should also implement monitoring solutions to detect unusual application crash patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts, and consider implementing application whitelisting or sandboxing techniques to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts.