CVE-2016-6304: High severity Advantech Spectre RT ERT351 firmware Versions 5.1.3 and prior vulnerability
A memory leak flaw was found in the way OpenSSL handled TLS status request extension data during session renegotiation. A remote attacker could cause a TLS server using OpenSSL to consume an excessive amount of memory and, possibly, exit unexpectedly after exhausting all available memory, if it enabled OCSP stapling support.
Other sources
Multiple memory leaks in t1lib.c in OpenSSL before 1.0.1u, 1.0.2 before 1.0.2i, and 1.1.0 before 1.1.0a allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption) via large OCSP Status Request extensions.
Quoting form the draft of the OpenSSL upstream advisory:
OCSP Status Request extension unbounded memory growth (CVE-2016-6304) =====================================================================
Severity: High
A malicious client can send an excessively large OCSP Status Request extension. If that client continually requests renegotiation, sending a large OCSP Status Request extension each time, then there will be unbounded memory growth on the server. This will eventually lead to a Denial Of Service attack through memory exhaustion. Servers with a default configuration are vulnerable even if they do not support OCSP. Builds using the "no-ocsp" build time option are not affected.
OpenSSL 1.1.0 users should upgrade to 1.1.0a OpenSSL 1.0.2 users should upgrade to 1.0.2i OpenSSL 1.0.1 users should upgrade to 1.0.1u
This issue was reported to OpenSSL on 29th August 2016 by Shi Lei (Gear Team, Qihoo 360 Inc.). The fix was developed by Matt Caswell of the OpenSSL development team.
— Red Hat
Affected Software
Remediation
Event History
Parent advisories
This vulnerability appears in the following advisories.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2016-6304?
CVE-2016-6304 has a medium severity rating due to the potential for a memory leak that can be exploited by remote attackers.
How do I fix CVE-2016-6304?
To fix CVE-2016-6304, upgrade to the patched versions of OpenSSL or the affected software as specified in the latest security advisories.
Which software is affected by CVE-2016-6304?
CVE-2016-6304 affects multiple versions of OpenSSL and related packages in Red Hat's JBoss and Tomcat, among others.
What causes the vulnerability in CVE-2016-6304?
CVE-2016-6304 is caused by a memory leak in OpenSSL's handling of TLS status request extension data during session renegotiation.
Can CVE-2016-6304 lead to denial of service?
Yes, CVE-2016-6304 can lead to denial of service as it allows an attacker to exhaust server memory.