CVE-2021-44492 – This vulnerability in YottaDB and FIS GT.M data... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2021-44492?

CVE-2021-44492 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (HIGH). This vulnerability in YottaDB and FIS GT.M database systems allows attackers to cause a crash via a NULL pointer dereference by sending crafted input to the f_incr function. It affects all systems running vulnerable versions of these database platforms. The impact is denial of service, potentially disrupting database operations.

📋 TL;DR

This vulnerability in YottaDB and FIS GT.M database systems allows attackers to cause a crash via a NULL pointer dereference by sending crafted input to the f_incr function. It affects all systems running vulnerable versions of these database platforms. The impact is denial of service, potentially disrupting database operations.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

YottaDB
FIS GT.M

Versions: YottaDB through r1.32, FIS GT.M through V7.0-000

Operating Systems: All supported platforms (Linux, UNIX variants)

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: All installations of affected versions are vulnerable regardless of configuration

📦 What is this software?

Gt.m by Fisglobal

View all CVEs affecting Gt.m →

Yottadb by Yottadb

View all CVEs affecting Yottadb →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Complete database service disruption leading to application downtime and data unavailability

🟠

Likely Case

Database process crash requiring restart, causing temporary service interruption

🟢

If Mitigated

Minimal impact with proper network segmentation and input validation

🌐 Internet-Facing: MEDIUM - Requires crafted input to vulnerable function, but internet-facing databases could be targeted

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal attackers or compromised systems could exploit this to disrupt services

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: LOW

Exploitation requires sending crafted input to the vulnerable f_incr function, which may be accessible through various interfaces

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: YottaDB r1.34+, FIS GT.M V7.0-002+

Vendor Advisory: http://tinco.pair.com/bhaskar/gtm/doc/articles/GTM_V7.0-002_Release_Notes.html

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Download patched version from official sources. 2. Backup databases. 3. Install updated version. 4. Restart database processes.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Input validation wrapper

all

Implement input validation for f_incr function calls to filter malicious input

# Custom M code wrapper for f_incr calls
# Validate input parameters before calling f_incr

Network access restrictions

linux

Restrict network access to database ports from untrusted sources

iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport <db_port> -s trusted_network -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport <db_port> -j DROP

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict network segmentation to isolate database servers from untrusted networks
Monitor for abnormal database crashes and implement automated restart procedures

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check version with: yottadb -version or mumps -version

Check Version:

yottadb -version | grep Version || mumps -version | head -1

Verify Fix Applied:

Confirm version is YottaDB r1.34+ or GT.M V7.0-002+

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Database process crashes
NULL pointer dereference errors in database logs
Abnormal termination of database processes

Network Indicators:

Unusual patterns of requests to database functions
Multiple connection attempts followed by service disruption

SIEM Query:

source="database.log" AND ("segmentation fault" OR "NULL pointer" OR "f_incr" OR "abnormal termination")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2021-44492

CVSS v3 Score: 7.5 (HIGH)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CWE: CWE-476

Published: April 15, 2022

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

http://tinco.pair.com/bhaskar/gtm/doc/articles/GTM_V7.0-002_Release_Notes.html Release Notes,Third Party Advisory
https://gitlab.com/YottaDB/DB/YDB/-/issues/828 Issue Tracking,Patch,Third Party Advisory
https://sourceforge.net/projects/fis-gtm/files/ Product,Third Party Advisory
http://tinco.pair.com/bhaskar/gtm/doc/articles/GTM_V7.0-002_Release_Notes.html Release Notes,Third Party Advisory
https://gitlab.com/YottaDB/DB/YDB/-/issues/828 Issue Tracking,Patch,Third Party Advisory
https://sourceforge.net/projects/fis-gtm/files/ Product,Third Party Advisory

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