A programming error in the nxdomain-redirect feature can cause an assertion failure in query.c if the alternate namespace used by nxdomain-redirect is a descendant of a zone that is served locally. The most likely scenario where this might occur is if the server, in addition to performing NXDOMAIN redirection for recursive clients, is also serving a local copy of the root zone or using mirroring to provide the root zone, although other configurations are also possible. Versions affected: BIND 9.12.0-> 9.12.4, 9.14.0. Also affects all releases in the 9.13 development branch.
The product contains an assert() or similar statement that can be triggered by an attacker, which leads to an application exit or other behavior that is more severe than necessary.
| Name | Vendor | Start Version | End Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bind | Isc | 9.12.0 (including) | 9.12.4 (including) |
| Bind | Isc | 9.13.0 (including) | 9.13.7 (including) |
| Bind | Isc | 9.14.0 (including) | 9.14.0 (including) |
While assertion is good for catching logic errors and reducing the chances of reaching more serious vulnerability conditions, it can still lead to a denial of service. For example, if a server handles multiple simultaneous connections, and an assert() occurs in one single connection that causes all other connections to be dropped, this is a reachable assertion that leads to a denial of service.