CVE-2021-44506 – This vulnerability in FIS GT.M (and related Yot... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2021-44506?

CVE-2021-44506 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (HIGH). This vulnerability in FIS GT.M (and related YottaDB) allows attackers to cause a NULL pointer dereference by corrupting a function pointer through improper input validation. This affects systems running vulnerable versions of GT.M/YottaDB database software. Attackers could potentially crash the application or execute arbitrary code.

📋 TL;DR

This vulnerability in FIS GT.M (and related YottaDB) allows attackers to cause a NULL pointer dereference by corrupting a function pointer through improper input validation. This affects systems running vulnerable versions of GT.M/YottaDB database software. Attackers could potentially crash the application or execute arbitrary code.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

FIS GT.M
YottaDB

Versions: All versions through V7.0-000

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

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Affects the core database engine functionality; no special configuration required for vulnerability.

📦 What is this software?

Gt.m by Yottadb

View all CVEs affecting Gt.m →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Remote code execution leading to complete system compromise, data corruption, or denial of service.

🟠

Likely Case

Application crash causing denial of service and potential data corruption in database operations.

🟢

If Mitigated

Limited impact with proper input validation and memory protection mechanisms in place.

🌐 Internet-Facing: MEDIUM - Requires specific conditions and knowledge of the database system, but could be exploited if exposed.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal attackers with access could exploit this to disrupt database operations.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires specific knowledge of the GT.M/YottaDB codebase and ability to manipulate function pointers through input validation flaws.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: V7.0-002 and later

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

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Download GT.M V7.0-002 or later from official sources. 2. Stop all GT.M/YottaDB processes. 3. Install the updated version following vendor instructions. 4. Restart database services.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Input validation enhancement

all

Implement additional input validation in application code that interacts with GT.M/YottaDB

Memory protection

linux

Enable ASLR and other memory protection mechanisms at OS level

sysctl -w kernel.randomize_va_space=2

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Restrict access to GT.M/YottaDB services to only trusted users and applications
Implement network segmentation to isolate database systems from untrusted networks

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check GT.M version: mumps -version | grep 'GT.M'

Check Version:

mumps -version

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify version is V7.0-002 or later: mumps -version

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Segmentation fault errors in GT.M logs
Unexpected process termination of mumps processes
Core dumps in working directories

Network Indicators:

Unusual database connection patterns
Multiple failed database operations

SIEM Query:

process_name:mumps AND (event_type:crash OR exit_code:139)

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2021-44506

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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