CVE-2024-45650 in Security Verify Directory
Summary
by MITRE • 01/31/2025
IBM Security Verify Directory 10.0 through 10.0.3 is vulnerable to a denial of service when sending an LDAP extended operation.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/08/2025
IBM Security Verify Directory versions 10.0 through 10.0.3 contains a vulnerability that allows for denial of service through manipulation of LDAP extended operations. This flaw represents a critical weakness in the directory service implementation that could be exploited by attackers to disrupt legitimate service availability. The vulnerability specifically affects the processing of LDAP extended operations which are used for various administrative and operational functions within the directory service framework. When an attacker sends specially crafted extended operations to the vulnerable system, the service becomes unresponsive or crashes, effectively denying access to authorized users who rely on the directory service for authentication and authorization functions. This vulnerability falls under the category of insufficient input validation as described in CWE-20, where the system fails to properly validate or sanitize input received through LDAP extended operations. The impact extends beyond simple service interruption as directory services often serve as foundational components for numerous enterprise applications and authentication systems. When the directory service becomes unavailable, downstream applications that depend on it for user authentication, access control, and identity management may experience cascading failures that affect broader organizational operations. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 which involves network denial of service attacks targeting network infrastructure components. Organizations utilizing IBM Security Verify Directory in production environments face significant risk as this vulnerability could be exploited by threat actors to disrupt critical business processes. The nature of the flaw suggests that it may be triggered through malformed or unexpected extended operation parameters that the system does not properly handle during processing. This creates an attack surface where an unauthenticated or authenticated attacker could potentially leverage the vulnerability to cause system instability. The vulnerability demonstrates poor error handling practices within the LDAP processing module of the directory service, where the system fails to implement proper exception handling or input sanitization for extended operations. Security teams should consider this vulnerability as part of their broader denial of service threat modeling efforts, particularly when assessing the resilience of identity and access management systems. The affected versions represent a specific window where the directory service implementation contained a critical flaw that could be exploited without requiring elevated privileges or complex attack chains. Organizations should prioritize patching this vulnerability to maintain the availability and integrity of their directory services, as denial of service attacks targeting identity infrastructure can have far-reaching consequences for enterprise security posture. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of proper input validation and robust error handling in enterprise directory services, as these systems form critical components of organizational security infrastructure. This flaw could potentially be combined with other attacks to create more sophisticated compromise scenarios, making it essential for security teams to address this vulnerability promptly through official IBM patches or workaround procedures. The attack surface for this vulnerability extends to any network component that communicates with the vulnerable directory service, including application servers, web applications, and authentication systems that rely on LDAP for user validation. Organizations should implement monitoring and alerting mechanisms to detect potential exploitation attempts, as the service disruption may be the only visible indicator of an active attack against this vulnerability. The remediation process should include thorough testing of patches in non-production environments to ensure compatibility with existing directory service configurations and applications that depend on the service functionality.