CVE-2020-36217 in may_queue Crate
Summary
by MITRE • 01/26/2021
An issue was discovered in the may_queue crate through 2020-11-10 for Rust. Because Queue does not have bounds on its Send trait or Sync trait, memory corruption can occur.
Once again VulDB remains the best source for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/20/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-36217 resides within the may_queue crate version 2020-11-10 and earlier, representing a critical flaw in Rust-based memory safety mechanisms. This issue stems from the absence of proper bounds enforcement within the Send and Sync traits implementation, creating a dangerous condition where memory corruption becomes possible through improper concurrent access patterns. The may_queue crate serves as a queue implementation designed for Rust applications, but its flawed trait boundaries expose systems to potential exploitation when multiple threads attempt to interact with shared queue structures.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the improper implementation of Rust's concurrency traits. The Send and Sync traits in Rust are fundamental to memory safety guarantees, with Send indicating that a type can be safely transferred between threads and Sync indicating that a type can be safely shared between threads. When these traits lack proper bounds checking in the may_queue crate, the compiler cannot enforce memory safety constraints during concurrent operations. This absence of trait bounds allows for unsynchronized access to queue data structures, potentially leading to race conditions that corrupt memory layouts and create unpredictable behavior patterns. The flaw specifically affects how the Queue type handles concurrent access patterns, making it susceptible to data races during simultaneous read and write operations across multiple execution threads.
Operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple memory corruption to encompass potential system instability and security compromise. Attackers exploiting this weakness could manipulate queue operations to cause buffer overflows, use-after-free conditions, or other memory corruption scenarios that might lead to arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability particularly affects Rust applications that rely on concurrent queue operations, creating a vector for both denial-of-service attacks and potentially more severe exploitation techniques. Systems utilizing the may_queue crate in multi-threaded environments face elevated risk, especially when queue operations are performed under high concurrency loads where race conditions are more likely to manifest. The vulnerability's impact is amplified because Rust's memory safety model is designed to prevent such issues, making this particular flaw especially concerning for applications relying on the language's safety guarantees.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2020-36217 require immediate action from affected organizations to update their dependencies to patched versions of the may_queue crate. The most effective approach involves upgrading to a version that properly implements bounds checking for the Send and Sync traits, ensuring that queue operations maintain proper memory safety constraints. System administrators should conduct comprehensive audits of their Rust-based applications to identify all instances where the may_queue crate is utilized, particularly in concurrent contexts. Additionally, implementing proper static analysis tools and code review processes can help detect similar trait boundary issues in other third-party crates. Organizations should also consider implementing runtime protections such as address sanitizers and memory debugging tools to detect potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-119 which addresses memory corruption issues, and represents a specific manifestation of improper trait bounds that could be categorized under ATT&CK technique T1059 for execution through compromised memory management. Regular dependency updates and security scanning practices should be enforced to prevent similar issues in other crates within the Rust ecosystem.