CAPEC-25 Metadata
Likelihood of Attack
Low
Typical Severity
High
Overview
Summary
The adversary triggers and exploits a deadlock condition in the target software to cause a denial of service. A deadlock can occur when two or more competing actions are waiting for each other to finish, and thus neither ever does. Deadlock conditions can be difficult to detect.
Prerequisites
The target host has a deadlock condition. There are four conditions for a deadlock to occur, known as the Coffman conditions. [REF-101] The target host exposes an API to the user.
Execution Flow
| Step | Phase | Description | Techniques |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Explore | The adversary initiates an exploratory phase to get familiar with the system. |
|
| 2 | Explore | The adversary triggers a first action (such as holding a resource) and initiates a second action which will wait for the first one to finish. |
|
| 3 | Explore | If the target program has a deadlock condition, the program waits indefinitely resulting in a denial of service. |
|
Potential Solutions / Mitigations
Use known algorithm to avoid deadlock condition (for instance non-blocking synchronization algorithms). For competing actions, use well-known libraries which implement synchronization.
Related Weaknesses (CWE)
Taxonomy Mappings
Taxonomy: ATTACK
| Entry ID | Entry Name |
|---|---|
| 1499.004 | Endpoint Denial of Service: Application or System Exploitation |
Stay Ahead of Attack Patterns
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