CVE-2023-54329
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2023-54329 is a critical remote command execution vulnerability in Inbit Messenger versions 4.6.0 through 4.9.0. Unauthenticated attackers can exploit a stack overflow in the messenger's protocol by sending specially crafted XML packets to port 10883, allowing them to execute arbitrary commands with system privileges. Organizations running affected versions of Inbit Messenger are at risk.
💻 Affected Systems
- Inbit Messenger
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attackers gaining full control over affected systems, installing malware, stealing data, and using the system as a foothold for lateral movement.
Likely Case
Attackers deploy ransomware, cryptocurrency miners, or backdoors on vulnerable systems, leading to operational disruption and data loss.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with network segmentation preventing exploitation, though vulnerable systems remain at risk if exposed.
🎯 Exploit Status
Public exploit code is available, making this easily weaponizable. The attack requires sending a single malicious XML packet to the vulnerable service.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Unknown
Vendor Advisory: No vendor advisory found
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
No official patch is available. Consider upgrading to a newer version if available, or implement workarounds and mitigations.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Block Port 10883
allBlock inbound and outbound traffic to port 10883/TCP at network firewalls to prevent exploitation.
# Windows Firewall: New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Block Inbit Messenger" -Direction Inbound -LocalPort 10883 -Protocol TCP -Action Block
# Linux iptables: iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 10883 -j DROP
Disable Inbit Messenger Service
allStop and disable the Inbit Messenger service to prevent it from listening on the network.
# Windows: sc stop "Inbit Messenger" && sc config "Inbit Messenger" start= disabled
# Linux: systemctl stop inbit-messenger && systemctl disable inbit-messenger
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Immediately isolate affected systems from the network to prevent exploitation.
- Implement strict network segmentation to limit communication to/from systems running Inbit Messenger.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if Inbit Messenger version 4.6.0-4.9.0 is installed and the service is listening on port 10883. Use netstat or similar tools: netstat -an | findstr :10883 (Windows) or netstat -tulpn | grep :10883 (Linux).Check Version:
# Windows: Check program version in Control Panel or registry. # Linux: Check package version with dpkg -l | grep inbit or rpm -qa | grep inbitVerify Fix Applied:
Verify that port 10883 is no longer listening or is blocked. Confirm the service is stopped/disabled and that network traffic to port 10883 is being blocked.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual process creation events from the Inbit Messenger service
- Failed or successful connections to port 10883 from unexpected sources
- XML parsing errors in application logs
Network Indicators:
- Traffic to port 10883 containing XML payloads with unusual structure or size
- Outbound connections from affected systems to command and control servers
SIEM Query:
source="*" (port=10883 OR process_name="inbit*" OR process_name="messenger*") AND (event_type="process_creation" OR event_type="network_connection")🔗 References
- https://github.com/a-rey/exploits/blob/main/writeups/Inbit_Messenger/v4.6.0/writeup.md
- https://web.archive.org/web/20200122082432/https://www.softsea.com/review/Inbit-Messenger-Basic-Edition.html
- https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/51127
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/inbit-messenger-unauthenticated-remote-command-execution-rce
- https://github.com/a-rey/exploits/blob/main/writeups/Inbit_Messenger/v4.6.0/writeup.md
