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CVE-2022-39368: CWE-404: Improper Resource Shutdown or Release in eclipse-californium californium

Medium
Published: Wed Nov 09 2022 (11/09/2022, 00:00:00 UTC)
Source: CVE
Vendor/Project: eclipse-californium
Product: californium

Description

Eclipse Californium is a Java implementation of RFC7252 - Constrained Application Protocol for IoT Cloud services. In versions prior to 3.7.0, and 2.7.4, Californium is vulnerable to a Denial of Service. Failing handshakes don't cleanup counters for throttling, causing the threshold to be reached without being released again. This results in permanently dropping records. The issue was reported for certificate based handshakes, but may also affect PSK based handshakes. It generally affects client and server as well. This issue is patched in version 3.7.0 and 2.7.4. There are no known workarounds. main: commit 726bac57659410da463dcf404b3e79a7312ac0b9 2.7.x: commit 5648a0c27c2c2667c98419254557a14bac2b1f3f

AI-Powered Analysis

AILast updated: 06/22/2025, 14:37:20 UTC

Technical Analysis

CVE-2022-39368 is a vulnerability identified in Eclipse Californium, a Java implementation of the Constrained Application Protocol (CoAP) as defined in RFC7252, primarily used for IoT cloud services. The vulnerability affects versions prior to 3.7.0 and 2.7.4 of Californium. The core issue arises from improper resource shutdown or release (CWE-404) and incomplete cleanup (CWE-459) during failed handshake attempts, specifically in certificate-based handshakes, though pre-shared key (PSK) handshakes may also be impacted. When a handshake fails, the system fails to properly decrement or reset counters used for throttling connection attempts. As a result, these counters accumulate and eventually reach a threshold that triggers permanent dropping of records, effectively causing a Denial of Service (DoS) condition. This flaw impacts both client and server components of Californium, meaning that either side of a CoAP communication can be affected. The vulnerability does not require user interaction but can be triggered remotely by sending malformed or failed handshake requests. The issue was addressed and patched in versions 3.7.0 and 2.7.4. No known workarounds exist, so upgrading to these fixed versions is essential. There are no known exploits in the wild at this time, but the nature of the vulnerability makes it a potential vector for DoS attacks against IoT infrastructure relying on Californium for CoAP communications.

Potential Impact

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability can be significant, especially for those deploying IoT solutions in critical infrastructure, smart cities, industrial automation, and cloud-based IoT services. A successful exploitation results in a Denial of Service, which can disrupt communication between IoT devices and cloud services, potentially leading to loss of telemetry data, failure in device management, or interruption of automated processes. This can degrade operational efficiency, cause service outages, and in critical sectors such as energy, transportation, or healthcare, may lead to safety risks or regulatory non-compliance. Since the vulnerability affects both client and server implementations, attackers can target either endpoint, increasing the attack surface. The lack of known workarounds means that organizations must rely on patching to mitigate risk. Given the increasing adoption of IoT technologies across Europe, especially in smart city projects and Industry 4.0 initiatives, the vulnerability poses a moderate risk to availability and operational continuity.

Mitigation Recommendations

1. Immediate upgrade to Eclipse Californium versions 3.7.0 or 2.7.4, depending on the version branch in use, is the primary and only effective mitigation. 2. Conduct an inventory of all IoT devices and services using Californium to identify affected versions. 3. Implement network-level protections such as rate limiting and anomaly detection on CoAP traffic to identify and block abnormal handshake patterns that could trigger the vulnerability. 4. Isolate critical IoT infrastructure from untrusted networks and enforce strict access controls to reduce exposure to potential attackers. 5. Monitor logs and telemetry for repeated failed handshake attempts which may indicate exploitation attempts. 6. Engage with IoT device vendors and cloud service providers to ensure they have applied patches or mitigations. 7. Develop incident response plans specific to IoT DoS scenarios to minimize downtime and impact if exploitation occurs. 8. Consider deploying fallback communication protocols or redundant systems to maintain availability during potential DoS events.

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Technical Details

Data Version
5.1
Assigner Short Name
GitHub_M
Date Reserved
2022-09-02T00:00:00.000Z
Cisa Enriched
true

Threat ID: 682d9846c4522896dcbf4991

Added to database: 5/21/2025, 9:09:26 AM

Last enriched: 6/22/2025, 2:37:20 PM

Last updated: 7/29/2025, 7:52:05 PM

Views: 14

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