CVE-2024-51428

Executive Summary

CVE-2024-51428 is a Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerability in Espressif's ESP-IDF (Espressif IoT Development Framework) version 5.3.0. The flaw allows an attacker to cause a denial of service by sending a crafted data channel packet. This vulnerability affects IoT devices built on the ESP32 and ESP8266 platforms using the affected framework version. The attack vector is network-based, requiring no authentication, and can lead to device unresponsiveness or crash. No public exploit code or patch details are currently available.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability affects the ESP-IDF framework, which is a core component in the supply chain for many IoT products. Devices using ESP-IDF v5.3.0 are at risk. The lack of a patch means that all devices running this version are vulnerable until an update is released.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

The CVSS score is listed as 0.0, indicating insufficient data for scoring. However, based on the description, the vulnerability is network-exploitable with low complexity and no authentication required. The impact is limited to availability (DoS), with no confidentiality or integrity impact. A reasonable CVSS vector would be: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H (Base Score: 7.5, High).

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability lies in the data channel handling component of ESP-IDF. When a specially crafted data channel packet is received, the framework fails to properly validate the packet structure, leading to a memory corruption or infinite loop condition. This causes the device to become unresponsive or crash, resulting in a denial of service.

The attack can be executed remotely by sending a single malformed packet to the target device's data channel port. The exact mechanism involves improper bounds checking or state validation in the data channel protocol implementation.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

No patched code is available. The vulnerable code is in the data channel handling routines of ESP-IDF v5.3.0. The fix would likely involve adding input validation and bounds checking for data channel packets.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

1. Setup: Use an ESP32 device running ESP-IDF v5.3.0 with data channel enabled.
2. Crafting the Packet: Use a tool like Scapy or a custom Python script to send a malformed data channel packet.
3. Execution: Send the packet to the target device's IP address on the data channel port (typically port 80 or a custom port).
4. Verification: The device becomes unresponsive or crashes, confirming the DoS.

# Example Python script to send a malformed data channel packet
import socket

target_ip = "192.168.1.100"
target_port = 80

# Craft a malformed packet (example payload)
payload = b"\x00\x01\x02\x03" * 1000  # Oversized or malformed data

sock = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_DGRAM)
sock.sendto(payload, (target_ip, target_port))
sock.close()

Blue Team

1. Detection: Monitor for unusual data channel packets with abnormal sizes or patterns.
2. Mitigation: Implement network-level filtering to drop malformed packets. Use rate limiting on data channel ports.
3. Response: If a DoS is detected, isolate the affected device and restart it. Apply any available patches.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network: UDP packets with abnormal payload sizes or patterns on data channel ports.
• System: Device logs showing unexpected crashes or unresponsiveness.
• Memory: Memory dumps showing corruption in data channel buffers.

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2024_51428_DoS_Packet {
    meta:
        description = "Detects malformed data channel packets targeting ESP-IDF v5.3.0"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2024-01-01"
        reference = "CVE-2024-51428"
    strings:
        $malformed = { 00 01 02 03 }  // Example pattern
    condition:
        $malformed and uint16(0) > 1000  // Oversized payload
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2024-51428 DoS Attempt
id: 12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012
status: experimental
description: Detects attempts to exploit CVE-2024-51428 via malformed data channel packets
author: Valters IT
logsource:
    category: network
    product: suricata
detection:
    selection:
        event_type: alert
        alert.signature_id: 2024001
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate large data transfers
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert udp any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2024-51428 DoS Attempt"; content:"|00 01 02 03|"; depth:4; pcre:"/^.{0,4}\x00\x01\x02\x03/"; sid:2024001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

1. Immediate: Disable data channel functionality if not required. Apply network-level filtering to block malformed packets.
2. Short-term: Monitor for updates from Espressif. Apply patches as soon as they are released.
3. Long-term: Upgrade to a patched version of ESP-IDF when available. Implement input validation in custom applications.

Valters IT
DevSecOps & Cyber Threat Intelligence Expert