CVE-2020-37177: BOOTP Turbo 2.0 DOS Vulnerability

CVE-2020-37177 Overview

CVE-2020-37177 is a denial of service vulnerability in BOOTP Turbo 2.0 that allows attackers to crash the application by overwriting the Structured Exception Handler (SEH). This stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability (CWE-121) can be triggered through a specially crafted malicious payload of 2196 bytes with specific byte patterns, resulting in application crash and corruption of the SEH chain.

Critical Impact

Successful exploitation leads to complete application denial of service through SEH chain corruption, potentially disrupting BOOTP/DHCP network services.

Affected Products

• BOOTP Turbo 2.0
• Weird Solutions BOOTP Turbo

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-11 - CVE CVE-2020-37177 published to NVD
• 2026-02-12 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2020-37177

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as a Stack-based Buffer Overflow (CWE-121), which occurs when the application writes data beyond the allocated buffer on the stack, corrupting adjacent memory regions including the Structured Exception Handler (SEH) chain.

The vulnerability requires local access and user interaction to exploit. An attacker must craft a specific 2196-byte payload with particular byte patterns that, when processed by the application, triggers a buffer overflow condition. This overflow overwrites the SEH structure, which Windows uses to handle runtime exceptions. When an exception subsequently occurs, the corrupted SEH chain causes the application to crash.

The attack surface is limited to local exploitation scenarios, making this a targeted attack rather than a remotely exploitable vulnerability. However, in environments where BOOTP Turbo provides critical network configuration services, the denial of service impact can be significant.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2020-37177 lies in improper bounds checking when handling input data within BOOTP Turbo 2.0. The application fails to validate the length of user-supplied input before copying it into a fixed-size stack buffer. When input exceeding 2196 bytes with specific byte patterns is processed, it overflows the buffer boundaries and overwrites the SEH chain stored on the stack.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for this vulnerability is local, requiring the attacker to have access to the system where BOOTP Turbo 2.0 is installed. The attacker generates a malicious payload consisting of 2196 bytes with specific byte patterns designed to trigger the buffer overflow and overwrite the SEH chain. When the application processes this payload, it crashes due to the corrupted exception handling mechanism.

The vulnerability mechanism involves crafting a specific byte sequence that overflows the stack buffer and overwrites the Structured Exception Handler chain. When an exception is triggered, the corrupted SEH causes the application to crash. Technical details and proof-of-concept information are available through the Exploit-DB #47955 reference.

Detection Methods for CVE-2020-37177

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected crashes or termination of the BOOTP Turbo 2.0 process
• Application crash logs indicating SEH corruption or access violations
• Presence of unusually large input files or payloads (~2196 bytes or larger) targeting BOOTP Turbo
• Windows Event Log entries showing application faults in BOOTP Turbo executables

Detection Strategies

• Monitor for repeated BOOTP Turbo application crashes or service restarts
• Implement file integrity monitoring on BOOTP Turbo configuration directories
• Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions to detect SEH overwrite attempts
• Configure Windows Defender Exploit Guard or similar technologies to detect stack-based buffer overflow attacks

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable Windows Error Reporting to capture application crash data for forensic analysis
• Monitor BOOTP/DHCP service availability and alert on unexpected downtime
• Implement network monitoring to detect clients unable to obtain IP configurations
• Review system logs for patterns of repeated application restarts

How to Mitigate CVE-2020-37177

Immediate Actions Required

• Evaluate the criticality of BOOTP Turbo 2.0 in your environment and consider alternative DHCP/BOOTP solutions
• Restrict local access to systems running BOOTP Turbo to trusted administrators only
• Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of unauthorized payloads
• Enable Windows Exploit Protection features such as SEHOP (Structured Exception Handling Overwrite Protection)

Patch Information

No vendor patch information is currently available in the CVE data. Users should consult the Weird Solutions Overview website for any available updates or security advisories. For additional technical details, review the VulnCheck Advisory.

Workarounds

• Enable Windows SEHOP (Structured Exception Handler Overwrite Protection) to help mitigate SEH-based exploits
• Implement process isolation using application containers or sandboxing technologies
• Consider migrating to alternative BOOTP/DHCP solutions that receive active security maintenance
• Restrict physical and remote access to systems hosting BOOTP Turbo services

# Enable SEHOP via Registry (Windows)
reg add "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\kernel" /v DisableExceptionChainValidation /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f