CVE-2024-8626 in CompactLogix 5380 Controller
Summary
by MITRE • 10/08/2024
Due to a memory leak, a denial-of-service vulnerability exists in the Rockwell Automation affected products. A malicious actor could exploit this vulnerability by performing multiple actions on certain web pages of the product causing the affected products to become fully unavailable and require a power cycle to recover.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/28/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-8626 represents a critical memory leak issue affecting Rockwell Automation products that can lead to complete system unavailability. This weakness stems from improper memory management within the web interface components of these industrial control systems, creating a condition where allocated memory resources are not properly released during repeated user interactions. The flaw manifests when malicious actors perform multiple actions on specific web pages, triggering a progressive accumulation of unreleased memory segments that eventually exhaust the system's available memory resources. This memory consumption pattern aligns with CWE-401, which categorizes improper resource management as a fundamental weakness in software design that can result in resource exhaustion attacks. The vulnerability specifically impacts the web-based management interfaces of Rockwell Automation's industrial automation products, which are widely deployed in critical infrastructure environments including manufacturing facilities, process control systems, and industrial IoT deployments.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to encompass complete system incapacitation requiring physical intervention for recovery. When exploited, the memory leak causes the affected products to become fully unavailable, necessitating a complete power cycle to restore functionality. This requirement for physical reboot operations creates significant operational risks in industrial environments where system downtime can result in production losses, safety hazards, and costly emergency response procedures. The vulnerability's exploitation mechanism demonstrates characteristics consistent with attack patterns documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the T1499 category for network denial of service, where attackers leverage resource exhaustion techniques to compromise system availability. The memory leak affects the web server components that handle user requests, making it particularly dangerous as it can be triggered through legitimate web interface usage patterns that would appear normal to system administrators, thereby complicating detection and mitigation efforts.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires minimal privileged access or specialized knowledge, as it can be triggered through standard web interface interactions that are part of normal operational procedures. Attackers can repeatedly perform actions on targeted web pages to gradually consume available memory until system resources are exhausted, at which point the affected product becomes completely unresponsive. This characteristic makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in operational technology environments where continuous system availability is paramount for safety and production requirements. The memory leak behavior creates a predictable degradation pattern that can be monitored by system administrators, though the time required to reach complete system failure varies based on the specific product model and initial memory allocation. The vulnerability affects multiple Rockwell Automation products within their industrial control and monitoring platforms, including but not limited to programmable logic controllers, human machine interfaces, and network communication devices that rely on web-based management interfaces. Organizations should implement immediate monitoring of system memory usage patterns to detect potential exploitation attempts, while also preparing emergency procedures for system recovery that account for the need for physical power cycling operations.