__________________________________________________________

                       The U.S. Department of Energy
                   Computer Incident Advisory Capability
                           ___  __ __    _     ___
                          /       |     /_\   /
                          \___  __|__  /   \  \___
             __________________________________________________________

                             INFORMATION BULLETIN

                Cisco Networking and Controller Vulnerabilities
                              [Document ID: 69702]

April 5, 2006 19:00 GMT                                           Number Q-165
______________________________________________________________________________
PROBLEM:       Multiple vulnerabilities exist in the Cisco Optical Networking 
               System (ONS)and within the Cisco Transport Controller (CTC) 
               applet launcher. 
PLATFORM:      Cisco ONS 15310-CL Series 
               Cisco ONS 15327 Series 
               Cisco ONS 15454 MSPP 
               Cisco ONS 15454 MSTP 
               Cisco ONS 15600 Series 
               Cisco Transport Controller versions 4.0.x and earlier are 
               affected by the CTC vulnerability. 
DAMAGE:        These vulnerabilities will result in a denial of service (DoS) 
               of the Common Control Cards and may allow execution of 
               arbitrary code on the CTC workstation. 
SOLUTION:      Apply current patches. 
______________________________________________________________________________
VULNERABILITY  The risk is MEDIUM - These vulnerabilities will result in a 
ASSESSMENT:    denial of service (DoS) of the Common Control Cards and may 
               allow execution of arbitrary code on the CTC workstation. 
______________________________________________________________________________
LINKS: 
 CIAC BULLETIN:      http://www.ciac.org/ciac/bulletins/q-165shtml 
 ORIGINAL BULLETIN:  http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/products_security_
                     advisory09186a0080652714.shtml 
______________________________________________________________________________
[***** Start Document ID: 69702 *****]

Products & Services
Cisco Security Advisory: Cisco Optical Networking System 15000 Series and 
Cisco Transport Controller Vulnerabilities 
 
 Downloads   
Cisco Security Advisory: Cisco Optical Networking System 15000 Series and 
Cisco Transport Controller Vulnerabilities 
 
 
 
 
 
Document ID: 69702


Advisory ID: cisco-sa-20060405-ons.shtml
http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/707/cisco-sa-20060405-ons.shtml 
Revision 1.0
For Public Release 2006 April 05 1500 GMT (UTC)

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Contents
Summary 
Affected Products 
Details 
Impact 
Software Versions and Fixes 
Workarounds 
Obtaining Fixed Software 
Exploitation and Public Announcements 
Status of This Notice: FINAL 
Distribution 
Revision History 
Cisco Security Procedures 


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Summary 
Multiple vulnerabilities exist in the Cisco Optical Networking System (ONS) 
15310 Multi-service Provisioning Platforms (MSPP), ONS 15327 MSPP, ONS 15454 
MSPP, ONS 15454 Multi-service Transport Platform (MSTP) and the ONS 15600 MSPP. 
These vulnerabilities will affect Optical nodes that have the Common Control
Cards connected to a Data Communications Network (DCN) and are enabled for 
Internet Protocol Version 4 (IP). Successful exploitation of these 
vulnerabilities will result in a denial of service (DoS) of the Common Control 
Cards.

A separate vulnerability exists within the Cisco Transport Controller (CTC) 
applet launcher which may allow execution of arbitrary code on the CTC
 workstation. This software is downloaded from the Common Control Cards when 
a management connection is made to the Optical node.

Cisco has made free software available to address these vulnerabilities for 
affected customers. 

There are workarounds available to mitigate the effects of these 
vulnerabilities.

This advisory is posted at http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/707/cisco-sa-
20060405-ons.shtml.

Affected Products 
Vulnerable Products 
The following Cisco ONS 15000 series platforms are vulnerable, if they are 
configured for either IP or OSPF on the LAN interface or secure mode EMS-to-
network-element access, and if they are running unfixed releases of system 
software:

Cisco ONS 15310-CL Series

Cisco ONS 15327 Series

Cisco ONS 15454 MSPP 

Cisco ONS 15454 MSTP

Cisco ONS 15600 Series

Cisco Transport Controller versions 4.0.x and earlier are affected by the CTC 
vulnerability.

Products Confirmed Not Vulnerable 
The following Cisco ONS 15000 series platforms are not vulnerable to the 
Cisco ONS vulnerabilities listed above: 

Cisco ONS 15100 Series

Cisco ONS 15200 Series

Cisco ONS 15302, ONS 15305 and ONS 15310-MA platforms

Cisco ONS 15500 Series

Cisco ONS 15800 Series

Cisco Transport Controller versions 4.1.0 and later are not affected by the 
CTC vulnerability.

No other Cisco ONS products are currently known to be affected by these 
vulnerabilities.

No other Cisco products are currently known to be affected by these 
vulnerabilities.

Details 
The affected Cisco ONS 15310-CL, ONS 15327, ONS 15454 MSPP/ONS 15454 MSTP, 
and ONS 15600 hardware is managed via the CTX, XTC, TCC2/TCC2+, and TSC 
control cards respectively (hereafter referred to purely as control card). 
These control cards are usually connected to a Data Communications Network 
(DCN). In this context the term DCN is used to denote the network that 
transports management information between a management station and the 
network entity (NE). This definition of DCN is sometimes referred to as 
Management Communication Network (MCN). The DCN is usually physically or 
logically separated from the customer network and isolated from the Internet. 
This limits the exposure to the exploitation of these vulnerabilities from 
the Internet.

ACK Denial of Service (DoS) Attack 
This vulnerability is documented in Cisco bug ID: CSCei45910 ( registered 
customers only) : ACK Denial of Service (DoS) attack.

This vulnerability applies to all Cisco ONS NEs when IP is configured on 
the Local Area Network (LAN) interface.

IP on the LAN interface is enabled by default.

NEs which are not enabled for IP on the LAN interface are not affected by 
this vulnerability.

If an IP address has been entered into the IP address field on the CTC 
navigation tab, (Provisioning > Network > General), the device is enabled 
for IP and is vulnerable if running an affected version of software.

The NEs are susceptible to an ACK Denial of Service (DoS) attack on multiple 
remote management TCP ports. Ports include: 

80:    HTTP
443:   HTTPS
1080:  SOCKS
2361:  TL1
3081:  TL1-LV
3082:  TL1-RAW
3083:  TL1-TELNET
57790: non-secure Internet Inter-ORB Protocol (IIOP) port
57791: Secure Socket Layer Inter-ORB Protocol (SSLIOP) port. 
Note: Not all ports are open in all versions of system software.

The control card(s) on the network entity will exhaust memory resources and 
be unable to open any new socket connections, and may reset under continued 
attack. An ACK DoS attack is conducted by not sending the final ACK required 
for a 3-way TCP handshake to complete, and instead sending an invalid 
response to move the connection to an invalid TCP state. Repeated attacks 
could cause both control cards to be reset at the same time.

Control Card Resets with Crafted IP Packet 
This vulnerability is documented in Cisco bug ID: CSCsc51390 ( registered
customers only) : Control card resets with crafted IP packet.

This vulnerability applies to all Cisco ONS NEs when IP is configured on the 
LAN interface and secure mode for element management system (EMS)-to-network-
element access is enabled. The NEs are susceptible to a DoS attack when 
receiving a specially crafted IP packet. 

NEs which are not enabled for secure mode EMS-to-network-element access are 
not affected by this vulnerability. 

Secure mode EMS-to-network-element access is disabled by default.

A device is vulnerable if via CTC the Provisioning > Security > Access node 
level navigation tab has Access State checked for secure, and is not 
vulnerable if it is checked for non-secure.

Repeated crafted IP packets would cause both the control cards to be reset 
at the same time.

Control Card Resets with Crafted IP Packet 
This vulnerability is documented in Cisco bug ID: CSCsd04168 ( registered 
customers only) : Control card resets with crafted IP packet.

This vulnerability applies to all Cisco ONS NEs in which IP is configured 
on the LAN interface. The NEs are susceptible to a Denial of Service (DoS) 
attack when receiving a specially crafted IP packet. 

NEs which are not enabled for IP on the LAN interface are not affected by 
this vulnerability.

IP on the LAN interface is enabled by default.

If an IP address has been entered into the IP address field on the CTC 
navigation tab, (Provisioning > Network > General), the device is enabled 
for IP and is vulnerable if running an affected version of software.

Repeated crafted IP packets could cause both the control cards to be reset 
at the same tim.

Malformed OSPF Packets Cause Control Cards to Reset 
This vulnerability is documented in Cisco bug ID: CSCsc54558 ( registered
customers only) : Malformed OSPF packets cause control cards to reset.

This vulnerability applies to all Cisco ONS NEs if Open Shortest Path First 
(OSPF) routing protocol is configured on the LAN interface of the control 
cards.

OSPF is a routing protocol defined by RFC 2328 . It is designed to manage 
IP routing inside an Autonomous System (AS). OSPF packets use IP protocol 
number 89. 

The vulnerability exists in the processing of OSPF packets that can be 
exploited to cause a reset of the control cards. Since OSPF needs to process 
unicast packets as well as multicast packets, this vulnerability can be 
exploited remotely. It is also possible for an attacker to target multiple 
systems on the local segment at a time.

NEs which are not enabled with OSPF on the LAN interface are not affected 
by this vulnerability.

OSPF on the LAN interface is disabled by default.

A device is vulnerable if via CTC the Provisioning > Network > OSPF node 
level navigation tab has the OSPF Active on LAN check box enabled, and is 
not vulnerable if the check box is not enabled.

java.policy Permissions too Broad for CTC Launcher 
This vulnerability is documented in bug ID: CSCea25049 ( registered 
customers only) : java.policy permissions too broad for CTC Launcher.

This vulnerability applies to all workstations that may have had CTC 
installed on them. CTC is a Java application that is installed in two 
locations; CTC is stored on the control cards and it is downloaded to the 
users workstation the first time they log into the NE with a new software 
release.

During the CTC installation, an entry is made in the Java policy file(s) 
granting all permission to any software originating from the codeBase, or 
source at http://*/fs/LAUNCHER.jar.

Example:

grant codeBase "http://*/fs/LAUNCHER.jar" { permission java.security.
AllPermission; }; 

This may allow arbitrary code to be executed on the CTC computer, should 
a user of the computer with CTC installed, access any web page which runs 
Java code from /fs/LAUNCHER.jar location.

The Java policy files are the java.policy file(s) in the public Java 
directories, typically ${java.home}/lib/security/java.policy where the 
Java Plugin is installed, and the .java.policy file (note the leading dot) 
in the user's home directory, typically ${user.home}/.java.policy. 

In CTC versions 4.1.0 and later the launcher.jar file is signed. Versions 
4.1.0 and later will also detect the presence of the java.policy entry 
and post a dialog box offering the user the option to remove the entry. 

Impact 
Successful exploitation of…

CSCei45910 ( registered customers only) : ACK Denial of Service (DoS) 
attack

CSCsc51390 ( registered customers only) : Control card resets with 
crafted IP Packet 

CSCsd04168 ( registered customers only) : Control card resets with
 crafted IP Packet 

CSCsc54558 ( registered customers only) : Malformed OSPF packets cause
 control cards to reset 

…will result in the corresponding control cards resetting…

On the Cisco ONS 15310-CL, ONS 15327 and ONS 15454 hardware, whenever both 
the active and standby control cards are rebooting at the same time, the 
synchronous data channels traversing the switch drop traffic until the card 
reboots. Asynchronous data channels traversing the switch are not impacted. 
Manageability functions provided by the network element using the CTX, XTC,
 TCC2/TCC2+ control cards are not available until the control card reboots. 

On the Cisco ONS 15600 hardware, whenever both the active and standby 
control cards are rebooting at the same time, there is no impact to the 
data channels traversing the switch because the TSC does a software reset 
which does not impact the timing being provided by the TSC for the data 
channels. Manageability functions provided by the network element through 
the TSC control cards are not available until the control card reboots. 

Successful exploitation of:

CSCea25049 ( registered customers only) : java.policy permissions too broad 
for CTC Launcher.
With the insertion of the entry in the Java policy file(s) granting all 
permission to any software originating from the codeBase, or source at 
http://*/fs/LAUNCHER.jar, the CTC installed workstation is vulnerable to 
execute malicious code from a remote computer. Once executing the malicious 
version of LAUNCHER.jar it will allow the program privilege level 
AllPermission on the CTC installed workstation. This allows the malicious 
program the ability to delete files, download private information from the 
CTC installed workstation, modify files on the CTC installed workstation, 
or load other executables.

Software Versions and Fixes 
When considering software upgrades, also consult http://www.cisco.com
/go/psirt and any subsequent advisories to determine exposure and a 
complete upgrade solution.

In all cases, customers should exercise caution to be certain the devices 
to be upgraded contain sufficient memory and that current hardware and 
software configurations will continue to be supported properly by the new 
release. If the information is not clear, contact the Cisco Technical 
Assistance Center ("TAC") or your contracted maintenance provider for 
assistance.

Vulnerability 
 Affected Major Release 
 First Fixed Release 
 
ACK DoS Attack (CSCei45910)
 1.X.X
 Migrate to 4.1.8.1 or later
 
4.0.X or earlier
 Migrate to 4.1.8.1 or later 
 
4.1.X
 4.1.8.1
 
4.5.X
 Migrate to 5.0.6 or later
 
4.6.X
 4.6.6
 
4.7.X
 Migrate to 5.0.6 or later
 
5.0.X
 5.0.6
 
6.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
6.2.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
7.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
Crafted IP Packet (CSCsc51390)
 4.0.X or earlier
 Not Vulnerable
 
4.1.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
4.5.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
4.6.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
4.7.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
5.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
6.0.X
 Migrate to 6.2.0 or later
 
6.2.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
7.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
Crafted IP Packet (CSCsd04168)
 4.1.X or earlier
 4.1.8.1
 
4.5.x 
 Not Vulnerable
 
4.6.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
4.7.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
5.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
6.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
6.2.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
7.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
Malformed OSPF (CSCsc54558)
 4.0.X or earlier
 Migrate to 4.1.8.1 or later 
 
4.1.X
 4.1.8.1
 
4.5.X
 Migrate to 6.2.0 or later
 
4.6.X
 Migrate to 6.2.0 or later
 
4.7.0
 Migrate to 6.2.0 or later
 
5.0.X
 Migrate to 6.2.0 or later
 
6.0.X
 Migrate to 6.2.0 or later
 
6.2.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
7.0.X
 Not Vulnerable
 
CTC (CSCea25049)
 1.X.X
 Migrate to 4.1.0 or later
 
4.0.X or earlier
 Migrate to 4.1.0 or later
 
4.1.X or later
 Not Vulnerable
 


Workarounds 
The following general mitigation actions are relevant for all the listed 
vulnerabilities:
Ensuring the DCN is physically or logically separated from the customer 
network and isolated from the Internet will limit the exposure to the 
exploitation of these vulnerabilities from the Internet or customer 
networks.

Apply access control lists (ACLs) on routers / switches / firewalls 
installed in front of the vulnerable network devices such that TCP/IP 
traffic destined for the CTX, XTC, TCC2/TCC2+, or TSC control cards on 
the ONS is allowed only from the network management workstations. Refer 
to http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/707/tacl.html for examples on how to 
apply ACLs on Cisco routers. 

To prevent spoofed IP packets with the source IP address set to that of 
the network management station from reaching the management interface of 
the NE, leverage anti-spoofing techniques. For more information on 
leveraging ACLs for anti-spoofing, refer to http://www.cisco.com/warp/
public/707/21.pdf and http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2827.txt. 

The Unicast Reverse Path Forwarding (Unicast RPF) feature helps to 
mitigate problems that are caused by forged IP source addresses that are 
passing through a router. Refer to http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td
/doc/product/software/ios122/122cgcr/fsecur_c/fothersf/scfrpf.htm for 
more information.

CSCea25049 ( registered customers only) : java.policy permissions too 
broad for CTC Launcher
Replace the * in the policy file entry with the IP address of the CTC 
login node. Duplicate the entry for multiple login nodes.
Example:
Vulnerable entry within Java.policy files:
grant codeBase "http://*/fs/LAUNCHER.jar" { permission java.security.
AllPermission; }; 
Workaround entered within Java.policy files:
grant codeBase "http://192.0.2.1/fs/LAUNCHER.jar" { permission java.
security.AllPermission; }; 


CSCsc51390 ( registered customers only) : Control card resets with 
crafted IP Packet.
A possible workaround is to have NEs disabled for secure mode EMS-to-
network-element access. 

 Caution: Cisco recommends that any remote management of a NE be 
conducted over a secure protocol, such as SSH, SSL, or SSLIOP.

Cisco recommends that affected users upgrade to a fixed software version 
of code.

Obtaining Fixed Software 
Cisco has made free software available to address this vulnerability for 
affected customers. Prior to deploying software, customers should 
consult their maintenance provider or check the software for feature set 
compatibility and known issues specific to their environment.

Customers may only install and expect support for the feature sets they 
have purchased. By installing, downloading, accessing or otherwise using 
such software upgrades, customers agree to be bound by the terms of 
Cisco's software license terms found at http://www.cisco.com/public/sw-
license-agreement.html, or as otherwise set forth at Cisco.com Downloads 
at http://www.cisco.com/public/sw-center/sw-usingswc.shtml. 

Do not contact either "psirt@cisco.com" or "security-alert@cisco.com" 
for software upgrades. 

Customers with Service Contracts 
Customers with contracts should obtain upgraded software through their 
regular update channels. For most customers, this means that upgrades 
should be obtained through the Software Center on Cisco's worldwide 
website at http://www.cisco.com.

Customers using Third-party Support Organizations 
Customers whose Cisco products are provided or maintained through prior 
or existing agreement with third-party support organizations such as 
Cisco Partners, authorized resellers, or service providers should contact 
that support organization for guidance and assistance with the appropriate
 course of action in regards to this advisory.

The effectiveness of any workaround or fix is dependent on specific 
customer situations such as product mix, network topology, traffic 
behavior, and organizational mission. Due to the variety of affected 
products and releases, customers should consult with their service 
provider or support organization to ensure any applied workaround or 
fix is the most appropriate for use in the intended network before it 
is deployed.

Customers without Service Contracts 
Customers who purchase direct from Cisco but who do not hold a Cisco 
service contract and customers who purchase through third-party vendors 
but are unsuccessful at obtaining fixed software through their point of 
sale should get their upgrades by contacting the Cisco Technical 
Assistance Center (TAC). TAC contacts are as follows. 

+1 800 553 2447 (toll free from within North America) 

+1 408 526 7209 (toll call from anywhere in the world) 

e-mail: tac@cisco.com 

Have your product serial number available and give the URL of this notice 
as evidence of your entitlement to a free upgrade. Free upgrades for 
non-contract customers must be requested through the TAC.

Refer to http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/687/Directory/DirTAC.shtml for 
additional TAC contact information, including special localized telephone 
numbers and instructions and e-mail addresses for use in various languages.

Exploitation and Public Announcements 
The Cisco PSIRT is not aware of any public announcements or malicious use 
of the vulnerability described in this advisory. 

Status of This Notice: FINAL 
THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND DOES NOT IMPLY ANY KIND 
OF GUARANTEE OR WARRANTY, INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR 
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE. YOUR USE OF THE INFORMATION ON THE DOCUMENT 
OR MATERIALS LINKED FROM THE DOCUMENT IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. CISCO RESERVES 
THE RIGHT TO CHANGE OR UPDATE THIS DOCUMENT AT ANY TIME.

A stand-alone copy or Paraphrase of the text of this document that omits
the distribution URL in the following section is an uncontrolled copy, 
and may lack important information or contain factual errors.

Distribution 
This advisory is posted on Cisco's worldwide website at http://www.cisco.
com/warp/public/707/cisco-sa-20060405-ons.shtml.

In addition to worldwide web posting, a text version of this notice is 
clear-signed with the Cisco PSIRT PGP key and is posted to the following 
e-mail and Usenet news recipients.

cust-security-announce@cisco.com

first-teams@first.org

bugtraq@securityfocus.com 

vulnwatch@vulnwatch.org 

cisco@spot.colorado.edu 

cisco-nsp@puck.nether.net 

full-disclosure@lists.grok.org.uk

comp.dcom.sys.cisco@newsgate.cisco.com 

Future updates of this advisory, if any, will be placed on Cisco's 
worldwide website, but may or may not be actively announced on mailing 
lists or newsgroups. Users concerned about this problem are encouraged 
to check the above URL for any updates. 

Revision History 
Revision 1.0
 2006-April-05
 Initial public release
 


Cisco Security Procedures 
Complete information on reporting security vulnerabilities in Cisco 
products, obtaining assistance with security incidents, and registering 
to receive security information from Cisco, is available on Cisco's 
worldwide website at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/products_
security_vulnerability_policy.html. This includes instructions for press 
inquiries 
regarding Cisco security notices. All Cisco security advisories are 
available at http://www.cisco.com/go/psirt. 

 


[***** End Document ID: 69702 *****]
_______________________________________________________________________________

CIAC wishes to acknowledge the contributions of Cisco Security Advisory for the 
information contained in this bulletin.
_______________________________________________________________________________


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