Vulnerability identifier: #VU39671

Vulnerability risk: Medium

CVSSv3.1: 4.6 [CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L/E:U/RL:O/RC:C]

CVE-ID: CVE-2016-9686

CWE-ID: CWE-20

Exploitation vector: Network

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
Puppet Enterprise
Client/Desktop applications / Software for system administration

Vendor: Puppet Labs

Description

The vulnerability allows a remote non-authenticated attacker to perform service disruption.

The Puppet Communications Protocol (PCP) Broker incorrectly validates message header sizes. An attacker could use this to crash the PCP Broker, preventing commands from being sent to agents. This is resolved in Puppet Enterprise 2016.4.3 and 2016.5.2.

Mitigation
Install update from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Puppet Enterprise: 2016.5.1

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External links
http://puppet.com/security/cve/cve-2016-9686

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Yes. This vulnerability can be exploited by a remote non-authenticated attacker via the Internet.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.