CVE-2021-37078 in Huawei
Summary
by MITRE • 12/07/2021
There is a Uncaught Exception vulnerability in Huawei Smartphone.Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may lead to remote Denial of Service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/10/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2021-37078 represents a critical uncaught exception flaw within Huawei smartphone firmware that exposes devices to remote denial of service attacks. This vulnerability resides in the smartphone's operating system or underlying software components, specifically affecting the handling of certain input data or system calls that trigger unexpected program termination. The issue manifests when the device processes malformed or specially crafted inputs that are not properly validated or handled by the application logic, resulting in abrupt system crashes or complete service interruption.
From a technical perspective, this uncaught exception vulnerability falls under the category of improper error handling within software systems and aligns with CWE-754, which describes weakness in which a program does not properly handle exceptional conditions that occur during execution. The flaw likely exists in the smartphone's kernel modules, system services, or application frameworks that process network data, user inputs, or inter-process communications. When malicious actors send specifically crafted network packets or trigger certain system functions, the device fails to gracefully handle these exceptional conditions, leading to system instability and complete service disruption.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple device malfunction, as it enables remote attackers to systematically disrupt smartphone functionality without requiring physical access or elevated privileges. This characteristic makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in mobile environments where devices frequently connect to networks and process external data streams. Attackers can exploit this weakness through various vectors including SMS messages, email attachments, network protocols, or malicious applications that trigger the problematic code path. The remote nature of the attack means that affected devices can be compromised from anywhere in the world, making it a significant threat to user privacy and device availability.
Security professionals should recognize this vulnerability as a potential entry point for more sophisticated attacks that could leverage the denial of service condition to create further exploitation opportunities. The vulnerability's classification as a remote denial of service aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers network denial of service attacks. Organizations and users should implement immediate mitigations including firmware updates from Huawei, network segmentation to limit exposure, and monitoring for unusual network traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, device manufacturers should consider implementing robust exception handling mechanisms and comprehensive input validation to prevent similar vulnerabilities from manifesting in future software releases, thereby strengthening overall system resilience against adversarial exploitation attempts.