CVE-2022-23486 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

A denial of service vulnerability from lack of resource management has been identified in the libp2p-rust library.

Understanding CVE-2022-23486

This CVE affects versions of libp2p-rust prior to 0.45.1, allowing an attacker to trigger a denial of service attack by causing the victim node to exhaust memory resources.

What is CVE-2022-23486?

The official rust language implementation of the libp2p networking stack, libp2p-rust, is vulnerable to a denial of service attack due to improper resource management. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability by causing the victim node to allocate numerous small memory chunks, leading to memory exhaustion and process termination.

The Impact of CVE-2022-23486

This vulnerability poses a high impact, as it allows attackers to execute denial of service attacks on victim nodes within libp2p-based networks. Continuous exploitation of this issue can result in the targeted nodes running out of memory and crashing.

Technical Details of CVE-2022-23486

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5, indicating a high severity threat. The attack complexity is low, and the attack vector is through the network, with high availability impact.

Vulnerability Description

In versions prior to 0.45.1, libp2p-rust allows an attacker node to force a victim node to allocate excessive small memory chunks, potentially leading to memory exhaustion and denial of service.

Affected Systems and Versions

Vendor: libp2p
Product: rust-libp2p
Affected Versions: < 0.45.1

Exploitation Mechanism

Attackers can exploit this vulnerability by sending malicious requests to victim nodes, triggering the allocation of large numbers of small memory chunks, ultimately causing memory exhaustion and process termination.

Mitigation and Prevention

To mitigate the risk associated with CVE-2022-23486, users are strongly advised to upgrade to

libp2p

version 0.45.1 or above. Additionally, users unable to upgrade should refer to the DoS Mitigation page for guidance on implementing mitigation strategies, monitoring applications, and responding to attacks.

Immediate Steps to Take

Upgrade to

libp2p

version 0.45.1 or above
Monitor resource usage and network activities for unusual patterns

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update software and libraries to the latest versions
Implement network security best practices and monitoring tools

Patching and Updates

Stay informed of security advisories and apply patches promptly to ensure protection against known vulnerabilities.