# CVE-2006-5614: Null dereference in n/a

> Remote attackers can crash the NAT service via malformed DNS queries when Internet Connection Sharing is enabled, causing denial of service.

- **Severity:** Low 2.6 (`AV:N/AC:H/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 31 Oct 2006
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-pgw5-3h46-mwq2

## What is CVE-2006-5614?

CVE-2006-5614 is a low-severity vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Xp, published on 31 Oct 2006. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Microsoft Windows NAT Helper Components (ipnathlp.dll) on Windows XP SP2, when Internet Connection Sharing is enabled, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (svchost.exe crash) via a malformed DNS query, which results in a null pointer dereference.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2006-5614?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Microsoft Windows Nt Helper Components, Microsoft Windows Xp.

## How do I fix CVE-2006-5614?

No fix has been published for CVE-2006-5614 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2006-5614 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2006-5614 exists.

Public exploit code:

- Microsoft Windows NAT Helper Denial of Service (metasploit)
- Microsoft Windows - NAT Helper Components 'ipnathlp.dll' Remote Denial of Service (exploitdb)
- Microsoft Windows - NAT Helper Components Remote Denial of Service (exploitdb)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2006-5614 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2006-5614 is a low-severity vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Xp, published on 31 Oct 2006. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2006-5614 exists.

Affected product: Microsoft Windows Xp. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-5614/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-5614/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2006-5614
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2006-5614
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2006-5614

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-5614/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.