CVE-2025-29998

Remediation/Mitigation Strategy for CVE-2025-29998: CAP Back Office Application OTP Flooding

Vulnerability Description:

• Vulnerability: Missing rate limiting on OTP requests in an API endpoint of the CAP back office application.
• Impact: Allows an authenticated remote attacker to send a high volume of OTP requests through the vulnerable API endpoint, leading to OTP bombing/flooding on the targeted system.
• CVE ID: CVE-2025-29998
• Affected System: CAP Back Office Application

Severity:

• CVSS Score: 8.2 (High)
• Impact: The vulnerability enables OTP flooding, which can disrupt legitimate user access, cause user frustration, and potentially overwhelm the system’s resources. It can also be a precursor to other attacks, such as account lockouts or even attempts to brute-force OTPs.

Known Exploit:

• An authenticated attacker can craft scripts or use tools to repeatedly send OTP requests to the vulnerable API endpoint. The absence of rate limiting allows them to generate a large number of OTPs for a single user or multiple users, effectively “bombing” them with OTPs.

Remediation and Mitigation Strategy:

The primary goal of this strategy is to prevent the exploitation of the OTP flooding vulnerability by implementing rate limiting and other security measures.

1. Implement Rate Limiting:

*   **Description:**  Implement strict rate limiting on the API endpoint responsible for OTP generation and sending.  This is the most critical step.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Define Thresholds:** Determine a reasonable number of OTP requests a user might legitimately require within a specific timeframe (e.g., 3 OTP requests per hour).  Consider different thresholds based on user roles or risk profiles.
    *   **Apply Rate Limiting:**  Use appropriate technologies (e.g., API gateways, web application firewalls (WAFs), reverse proxies, or application-level code) to enforce the defined rate limits.
    *   **Logging and Monitoring:**  Log all OTP requests and monitor for rate limiting violations.  Set up alerts to notify administrators when rate limits are exceeded.
    *   **Dynamic Rate Limiting (Optional):**  Consider implementing dynamic rate limiting that adjusts the threshold based on observed traffic patterns and potential malicious activity.

*   **Example:**  A simple rate limiting implementation using a WAF could be configured to block requests exceeding 3 OTP requests per user per hour.

2. Strengthen Authentication and Authorization:

*   **Description:** While the vulnerability requires authentication, reinforcing authentication and authorization can add layers of defense.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA):**  Implement MFA for user accounts to make it more difficult for attackers to gain access, even if they compromise credentials.  This adds another layer of security *before* OTP is involved.
    *   **Strong Password Policies:**  Enforce strong password policies to prevent weak or easily guessable passwords.
    *   **Principle of Least Privilege:**  Ensure that users only have the necessary permissions to perform their tasks.  Restrict access to the OTP generation API endpoint to authorized personnel only.

3. Input Validation and Sanitization:

*   **Description:**  Thorough input validation and sanitization can help prevent other potential attacks related to the API endpoint.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Validate User Input:**  Validate all input parameters to the OTP generation API endpoint, such as phone numbers or email addresses, to ensure they conform to expected formats and values.
    *   **Sanitize Input:** Sanitize input to prevent injection attacks (e.g., SQL injection, command injection).

4. Logging and Monitoring:

*   **Description:**  Comprehensive logging and monitoring are crucial for detecting and responding to attacks.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Log All OTP Requests:**  Log all OTP requests, including the source IP address, username, timestamp, and whether the request was successful.
    *   **Monitor for Suspicious Activity:**  Monitor logs for patterns indicative of OTP flooding, such as a large number of requests from a single IP address or for a specific user.
    *   **Alerting:**  Set up alerts to notify administrators when suspicious activity is detected.
    *   **Regular Log Review:**  Regularly review logs to identify and investigate potential security incidents.

5. Incident Response Plan:

*   **Description:**  Have a well-defined incident response plan in place to handle OTP flooding attacks.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Identify Key Personnel:**  Identify the key personnel responsible for responding to security incidents.
    *   **Define Response Procedures:**  Document the procedures for detecting, analyzing, containing, and recovering from OTP flooding attacks.
    *   **Test the Plan:**  Regularly test the incident response plan to ensure its effectiveness.

6. Code Review and Security Audits:

*   **Description:**  Conduct regular code reviews and security audits to identify and fix vulnerabilities in the CAP back office application.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Static and Dynamic Analysis:**  Use static and dynamic analysis tools to identify potential vulnerabilities in the code.
    *   **Penetration Testing:**  Conduct penetration testing to simulate real-world attacks and identify weaknesses in the system.
    *   **Secure Coding Practices:**  Follow secure coding practices to prevent vulnerabilities from being introduced during development.

7. Web Application Firewall (WAF):

*   **Description:** Consider deploying a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to provide an additional layer of protection against OTP flooding attacks and other web-based threats.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Configure WAF Rules:** Configure WAF rules to detect and block OTP flooding attempts.
    *   **Regular Updates:** Keep the WAF rules up-to-date to protect against new and emerging threats.

8. User Awareness Training:

*   **Description:** Educate users about OTP security and the importance of protecting their accounts.
*   **Implementation:**
    *   **Phishing Awareness:** Train users to recognize and avoid phishing attacks that could be used to steal their credentials.
    *   **OTP Security Best Practices:**  Educate users on best practices for using OTPs, such as not sharing them with anyone and being cautious of suspicious requests.

Rollout Plan:

1. Immediate Action (within 24 hours): Implement basic rate limiting at the API gateway or WAF level. This provides immediate, albeit potentially coarse-grained, protection.
2. Short-Term (within 1 week): Implement more granular rate limiting within the application code, tied to individual user accounts.
3. Medium-Term (within 1 month): Complete code review and security audit of the OTP generation API endpoint. Implement stricter input validation and sanitization.
4. Long-Term (ongoing): Regularly review and update security measures, including rate limiting thresholds, logging and monitoring configurations, and incident response plan.

Note: This remediation strategy is a general guideline and should be adapted to the specific requirements and environment of the CAP back office application. It is crucial to consult with security experts and perform thorough testing before implementing any changes in a production environment.

Assigner

• Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) [email protected]

Date

• Published Date: 2025-03-13 11:23:58
• Updated Date: 2025-03-13 11:23:58

More Details

CVE-2025-29998