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Home > Products and services > CSIRTUK advisories > Advisories archive > May 2005 > Five iDEFENSE Security Advisories

May 2005

Five iDEFENSE Security Advisories

ID: 00440
Ref: 407/2005
Date: 25 May 2005:15:24:10
Version: 1

Title: Five iDEFENSE Security Advisories
Abstract:
Vendors affected: iDEFENSE
Operating systems affected: iDEFENSE
Applications affected: iDEFENSE

Title
=====

Five iDEFENSE Security Advisories:

1. Ipswitch IMail IMAP LOGIN Remote Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities

2. Ipswitch IMail IMAP LSUB DoS Vulnerability

3. Ipswitch IMail IMAP SELECT Command DoS Vulnerability

4. Ipswitch IMail IMAP STATUS Remote Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

5. Ipswitch IMail Web Calendaring Arbitrary File Read Vulnerability

Detail
======

1. Remote exploitation of several buffer overflow vulnerabilities in
Ipswitch Inc.'s Imail IMAP server allows attackers to execute arbitrary
code with System privileges.

2. Remote exploitation of a denial of service (DoS) vulnerability in
Ipswitch Inc.'s IMail IMAP daemon allows attackers to cause 100 percent
CPU use on the server, thereby preventing legitimate users from
retrieving e-mail.

3. Remote exploitation of a denial of service vulnerability in Ipswitch
Inc.'s Imail IMAP server allows attackers to crash the target service
thereby preventing legitimate usage.

4. Remote exploitation of a buffer overflow vulnerability in Ipswitch
Inc.'s Imail IMAP server allows attackers to execute arbitrary code with
System privileges.

5. Remote exploitation of a directory traversal vulnerability in Ipswitch
Inc.'s Imail Web Calendaring server allows attackers to read arbitrary
files with System privileges.



1.



Ipswitch IMail IMAP LOGIN Remote Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities

iDEFENSE Security Advisory 05.24.05
www.idefense.com/application/poi/display?id=243&type=vulnerabilities
May 24, 2005

I. BACKGROUND

Ipswitch Collaboration Suite (ICS) is a comprehensive communication and
collaboration solution for Microsoft Windows with a customer base of
over 53 million users. More information is available on the vendor's
website:

http://www.ipswitch.com/products/IMail_Server/index.html

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of several buffer overflow vulnerabilities in
Ipswitch Inc.'s Imail IMAP server allows attackers to execute arbitrary
code with System privileges.

The first vulnerability specifically exists in the handling of a long
username to the LOGIN command. A long username argument of approximately

2,000 bytes will cause a stack based unicode string buffer overflow
providing the attacker with partial control over EIP. As this
vulnerability is in the LOGIN command itself, valid credentials are not
required.

The second vulnerability also exists in the handling of the LOGIN
command username argument, however it lends itself to easier
exploitation. If a large username starting with one of several special
characters is specified, a stack overflow occurs, allowing an attacker
to overwrite the saved instruction pointer and control execution flow.
Included in the list of special characters are the following: % : * @ &

Both of these vulnerabilities can lead to the execution of arbitrary
code.

III. ANALYSIS

Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary
code with System privileges. Valid credentials are not required to for
exploitation, which heightens the impact of this vulnerability.

IV. DETECTION

iDEFENSE has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in the latest

version of Ipswitch IMAIL, version 8.13. Version 8.12 is also confirmed
as vulnerable. It is suspected that earlier versions are also
vulnerable.

V. WORKAROUND

As this vulnerability is exploited before authentication occurs, the
only effective workaround is to limit access to the IMAP server by
filtering TCP port 143. If possible, consider disabling IMAP and forcing

users to use POP3.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

The vendor has released the following patch to fix this vulnerability:

ftp://ftp.ipswitch.com/Ipswitch/Product_Support/IMail/imail82hf2.exe

The associated vendor advisory can be found at:

http://www.ipswitch.com/support/imail/releases/imail_professional/im82hf
2.html

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CAN-2005-1255 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

04/25/2005 Initial vendor notification
05/10/2005 Initial vendor response
05/24/2005 Public disclosure

IX. CREDIT

The discoverer of the first vulnerability wishes to remain anonymous.
iDEFENSE Labs is credited with the discovery of the second
vulnerability.

Get paid for vulnerability research
http://www.idefense.com/poi/teams/vcp.jsp

Free tools, research and upcoming events
http://labs.idefense.com

X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright (c) 2005 iDEFENSE, Inc.

Permission is granted for the redistribution of this alert
electronically. It may not be edited in any way without the express
written consent of iDEFENSE. If you wish to reprint the whole or any
part of this alert in any other medium other than electronically, please
email customerservice@idefense.com for permission.

Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect,
or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on,
this information.



2.

Ipswitch IMail IMAP LSUB DoS Vulnerability

iDEFENSE Security Advisory 05.24.05
www.idefense.com/application/poi/display?id=245&type=vulnerabilities
May 24, 2005

I. BACKGROUND

Ipswitch Collaboration Suite (ICS) is a comprehensive communication and
collaboration solution for Microsoft Windows with a customer base of
over 53 million users. More information is available on the vendor's
website:

http://www.ipswitch.com/products/IMail_Server/index.html

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of a denial of service (DoS) vulnerability in
Ipswitch Inc.'s IMail IMAP daemon allows attackers to cause 100 percent
CPU use on the server, thereby preventing legitimate users from
retrieving e-mail.

The problem specifically exists within IMAPD32.EXE upon parsing a
malformed LSUB command. An attacker can cause the daemon to produce
heavy load by transmitting a long string of NULL characters to the
'LSUB' IMAP directive. This, in turn, causes an infinite loop,
eventually exhausting all available system resources and causing a
denial of service.

III. ANALYSIS

Exploitation allows unauthenticated remote attackers to render the IMAP
server useless, thereby preventing legitimate users from retrieving e-
mail. This attack takes few resources to launch and can be repeated
to ensure that an unpatched system is unable to recover. Exploitation
requires a valid IMAP account, thus limiting the impact of this
vulnerability.

IV. DETECTION

iDEFENSE has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in Ipswitch
IMail version 8.13. It is suspected that earlier versions are also
vulnerable.

V. WORKAROUND

As this vulnerability is exploited after authentication occurs, ensuring

that only trusted users have accounts can mitigate the risk somwhat. As
a more effective workaround, consider limiting access to the IMAP server

by filtering TCP port 143. If possible, consider disabling IMAP and
forcing users to use POP3.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

The vendor has released the following patch to fix this vulnerability:

ftp://ftp.ipswitch.com/Ipswitch/Product_Support/IMail/imail82hf2.exe

The associated vendor advisory can be found at:

http://www.ipswitch.com/support/imail/releases/imail_professional/im82hf
2.html

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CAN-2005-1249 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

04/25/2005 Initial vendor notification
05/10/2005 Initial vendor response
05/24/2005 Public disclosure

IX. CREDIT

The discoverer of the first vulnerability wishes to remain anonymous.

Get paid for vulnerability research
http://www.idefense.com/poi/teams/vcp.jsp

Free tools, research and upcoming events
http://labs.idefense.com

X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright (c) 2005 iDEFENSE, Inc.

Permission is granted for the redistribution of this alert
electronically. It may not be edited in any way without the express
written consent of iDEFENSE. If you wish to reprint the whole or any
part of this alert in any other medium other than electronically, please
email customerservice@idefense.com for permission.

Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect,
or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on,
this information.


3.


Ipswitch IMail IMAP SELECT Command DoS Vulnerability

iDEFENSE Security Advisory 05.24.05
www.idefense.com/application/poi/display?id=241&type=vulnerabilities
May 24, 2005

I. BACKGROUND

Ipswitch IMail server is a Windows based messaging solution with a
customer base of over 53 million users. More information about the
application is available at:

http://www.ipswitch.com/products/IMail_Server/index.html.

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of a denial of service vulnerability in Ipswitch
Inc.'s Imail IMAP server allows attackers to crash the target service
thereby preventing legitimate usage.

The problem specifically exists in the handling of long arguments to the
SELECT command. When a string approximately 260 bytes in size is
supplied a stack-based buffer overflow occurs that results in an
unhandled access violation forcing the daemon to exit. The issue is not
believed to be further exploitable.

III. ANALYSIS

Successful exploitation allows remote to crash vulnerable IMAP servers
and thereby prevent legitimate usage. The SELECT command is only
available post authentication and therefore valid credentials are
required to exploit this vulnerability

IV. DETECTION

iDEFENSE has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in the latest
version of Ipswitch IMAIL, version 8.13. Version 8.12 is also confirmed
as vulnerable. It is suspected that earlier versions are vulnerable as
well.

V. WORKAROUND

As this vulnerability is exploited after authentication occurs, ensuring

that only trusted users have accounts can mitigate the risk somwhat. As
a more effective workaround, consider limiting access to the IMAP server

by filtering TCP port 143. If possible, consider disabling IMAP and
forcing users to use POP3.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

The vendor has released the following patch to fix this vulnerability:

ftp://ftp.ipswitch.com/Ipswitch/Product_Support/IMail/imail82hf2.exe

The associated vendor advisory can be found at:

http://www.ipswitch.com/support/imail/releases/imail_professional/im82hf
2.html

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CAN-2005-1254 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

04/15/2005 Initial vendor notification
05/10/2005 Initial vendor response
05/24/2005 Coordinated public disclosure

IX. CREDIT

Sebastian Apelt is credited with this discovery.

Get paid for vulnerability research
http://www.idefense.com/poi/teams/vcp.jsp

Free tools, research and upcoming events
http://labs.idefense.com

X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright (c) 2005 iDEFENSE, Inc.

Permission is granted for the redistribution of this alert
electronically. It may not be edited in any way without the express
written consent of iDEFENSE. If you wish to reprint the whole or any
part of this alert in any other medium other than electronically, please
email customerservice@idefense.com for permission.

Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect,
or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on,
this information.


4.


Ipswitch IMail IMAP STATUS Remote Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

iDEFENSE Security Advisory 05.24.05
www.idefense.com/application/poi/display?id=244&type=vulnerabilities
May 24, 2005

I. BACKGROUND

Ipswitch Collaboration Suite (ICS) is a comprehensive communication and
collaboration solution for Microsoft Windows with a customer base of
over 53 million users. More information is available on the vendor's
website:

http://www.ipswitch.com/products/IMail_Server/index.html

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of a buffer overflow vulnerability in Ipswitch
Inc.'s Imail IMAP server allows attackers to execute arbitrary code with

System privileges.

The vulnerability specifically exists in the handling of a long mailbox
name to the STATUS command. A long mailbox name argument will cause a
stack based buffer overflow, providing the attacker with full control
over the saved return address on the stack. Once this has been achieved,

execution of arbitrary code becomes trivial. As this vulnerability is in

the STATUS command, which requires that a session is authenticated,
valid credentials are required.

III. ANALYSIS

Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary
code with System privileges. Valid credentials are required for
exploitation, which lessens the impact of this vulnerability.

IV. DETECTION

iDEFENSE has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in Ipswitch
IMail version 8.13. It is suspected that earlier versions are also
vulnerable.

V. WORKAROUND

As this vulnerability is exploited after authentication occurs, ensuring

that only trusted users have accounts can mitigate the risk somwhat. As
a more effective workaround, consider limiting access to the IMAP server

by filtering TCP port 143. If possible, consider disabling IMAP and
forcing users to use POP3.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

The vendor has released the following patch to fix this vulnerability:

ftp://ftp.ipswitch.com/Ipswitch/Product_Support/IMail/imail82hf2.exe

The associated vendor advisory can be found at:

http://www.ipswitch.com/support/imail/releases/imail_professional/im82hf
2.html

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CAN-2005-1256 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

04/25/2005 Initial vendor notification
05/10/2005 Initial vendor response
05/24/2005 Public disclosure

IX. CREDIT

iDEFENSE Labs is credited with this discovery.

Get paid for vulnerability research
http://www.idefense.com/poi/teams/vcp.jsp

Free tools, research and upcoming events
http://labs.idefense.com

X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright (c) 2005 iDEFENSE, Inc.

Permission is granted for the redistribution of this alert
electronically. It may not be edited in any way without the express
written consent of iDEFENSE. If you wish to reprint the whole or any
part of this alert in any other medium other than electronically, please
email customerservice@idefense.com for permission.

Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect,
or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on,
this information.



5.


Ipswitch IMail Web Calendaring Arbitrary File Read Vulnerability

iDEFENSE Security Advisory 05.24.05
www.idefense.com/application/poi/display?id=242&type=vulnerabilities
May 24, 2005

I. BACKGROUND

Ipswitch Collaboration Suite (ICS) is a comprehensive communication and
collaboration solution for Microsoft Windows with a customer base of
over 53 million users. More information is available on the vendor's
website:

http://www.ipswitch.com/products/IMail_Server/index.html

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of a directory traversal vulnerability in Ipswitch
Inc.'s Imail Web Calendaring server allows attackers to read arbitrary
files with System privileges.
The problem specifically exists because of a flaw in the handling of
requests for nonexistent javascript (jsp) files. By requesting a
nonexistent jsp file followed by a question mark, several sequences of
"..\" and then the path to a file on the system, an attacker can read
arbitrary files remotely without any authentication.

The following query demonstrates how the system's boot.ini file may be
retrieved:

GET /bla.jsp?\..\..\..\..\..\..\..\..\..\..\boot.ini HTTP/1.0
Connection: Close
Host: example.com
User-Agent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 5.01; Windows NT 5.0)
Pragma: no-cache

III. ANALYSIS

Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to retrieve arbitrary
files from the target host. Exploitation does not require authentication

and does not require exploit code, as a user can simply type the
malicious query in a web browser.

IV. DETECTION

iDEFENSE has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in the latest

version of Ipswitch IMAIL, version 8.13. It is suspected that earlier
versions are also vulnerable.

V. WORKAROUND

Limit access to the Web Calandaring server by allowing only trusted
hosts to access TCP port 8484, the default port for Web Calandaring. If
the Web Calandaring service is not required, disable it entirely.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

The vendor has released the following patch to fix this vulnerability:

ftp://ftp.ipswitch.com/Ipswitch/Product_Support/IMail/imail82hf2.exe

The associated vendor advisory can be found at:

http://www.ipswitch.com/support/imail/releases/imail_professional/im82hf
2.html

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CAN-2005-1252 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

04/25/2005 Initial vendor notification
05/10/2005 Initial vendor response
05/24/2005 Public disclosure

IX. CREDIT

The discoverer of this vulnerability wishes to remain anonymous.

Get paid for vulnerability research
http://www.idefense.com/poi/teams/vcp.jsp

Free tools, research and upcoming events
http://labs.idefense.com

X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright (c) 2005 iDEFENSE, Inc.

Permission is granted for the redistribution of this alert
electronically. It may not be edited in any way without the express
written consent of iDEFENSE. If you wish to reprint the whole or any
part of this alert in any other medium other than electronically, please
email customerservice@idefense.com for permission.

Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect,
or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on,
this information.
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