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IETF RFC 6946
[ACTIVE]

Processing of IPv6 "Atomic" Fragments

Metadata

Publisher
IETF
Doc Type
Standard
Pages
9
Abstract
The IPv6 specification allows packets to contain a Fragment Header without the packet being actually fragmented into multiple pieces (we refer to these packets as "atomic fragments"). Such packets are typically sent by hosts that have received an ICMPv6 "Packet Too Big" error message that advertises a Next-Hop MTU smaller than 1280 bytes, and are currently processed by some implementations as normal "fragmented traffic" (i.e., they are "reassembled" with any other queued fragments that supposedly correspond to the same original packet). Thus, an attacker can cause hosts to employ atomic fragments by forging ICMPv6 "Packet Too Big" error messages, and then launch any fragmentation-based attacks against such traffic. This document discusses the generation of the aforementioned atomic fragments and the corresponding security implications. Additionally, this document formally updates RFC 2460 and RFC 5722, such that IPv6 atomic fragments are processed independently of any other fragments, thus completely eliminating the aforementioned attack vector.
Publication Date
2013-05-01
Status Note
Proposed Standard
DOI
10.17487/RFC6946
Link
https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946
Author(s)
Fernando Gont
Keyword(s)
Fragmentation, Vulnerabilities, Atomic Fragments
Latest version of IETF RFC 6946

Document Versions — IETF RFC 6946

  • ▶ IETF RFC 6946 (2013-05-01)
    THIS DOC [ACTIVE] [LATEST VERSION]

Normative Reference(s)

Bibliographic Reference(s)

  • Gont, F., "Security Assessment of the Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)", UK Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure, (available on request). EXTERNAL
  • Gont, F., "Security Implications of Predictable Fragment Identification Values", Work in Progress, March 2013. EXTERNAL
  • IETF RFC 5927 [Active*]
  • RFC6274 — RFC6274 EXTERNAL
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IETF RFC 6946, Processing of IPv6 "Atomic" Fragments. Available at https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946
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IETF RFC 6946, Processing of IPv6 "Atomic" Fragments. Available at https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946

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IETF RFC 6946, Processing of IPv6 "Atomic" Fragments. Available at https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946
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<span class="citation"><cite>IETF RFC 6946</cite>, Processing of IPv6 &quot;Atomic&quot; Fragments. Available at <a href="https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946</a></span>

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IETF RFC 6946, Processing of IPv6 "Atomic" Fragments
doi: 10.17487/RFC6946
url: https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC6946
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<cite id="bib-rfc6946">IETF RFC 6946</cite>, Processing of IPv6 &quot;Atomic&quot; Fragments
<span class="doi">10.17487/RFC6946</span>
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