CVE-2005-2983 in Reports
Summary
by MITRE
SQL injection vulnerability in Oracle Reports that use Lexical References allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the values in the parameter form that appears when the paramform parameter is set to yes.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/11/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2005-2983 represents a critical SQL injection flaw within Oracle Reports functionality that leverages Lexical References to execute malicious commands. This issue specifically affects Oracle Reports components that utilize parameter forms with the paramform parameter set to yes, creating an attack vector that allows remote adversaries to manipulate database queries through user input fields. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and sanitization mechanisms within the Oracle Reports processing pipeline, where user-supplied values from parameter forms are directly incorporated into SQL statements without proper escaping or parameterization.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an attacker interacts with a vulnerable Oracle Reports application that employs Lexical References in its report definitions. When the paramform parameter is set to yes, the system displays a parameter form to users, and the values entered into these forms are processed through the Lexical Reference mechanism. The flaw arises because Oracle Reports does not adequately sanitize or escape these parameter values before incorporating them into SQL queries, allowing attackers to inject malicious SQL code that gets executed within the database context. This creates a direct pathway for attackers to bypass authentication, extract sensitive data, modify database contents, or even escalate privileges depending on the underlying database permissions.
The operational impact of CVE-2005-2983 extends beyond simple data theft, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform comprehensive database exploitation. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to execute arbitrary SQL commands, potentially gaining access to confidential information, modifying critical business data, or even establishing persistent access through database-level backdoors. The remote nature of this attack vector means that adversaries do not require local system access or physical presence to exploit the vulnerability, making it particularly dangerous for web-facing Oracle Reports installations. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-89 which describes SQL injection flaws, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1071.004 for application layer protocol manipulation, representing a classic database injection attack that can lead to full system compromise.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including disabling the paramform parameter when not required, implementing proper input validation and sanitization measures, and applying Oracle security patches released after the vulnerability disclosure. The recommended approach involves configuring Oracle Reports to avoid using Lexical References with user-supplied input, or implementing strict parameter validation that prevents special SQL characters from being processed. Additionally, network segmentation and firewall rules should restrict access to Oracle Reports applications to trusted IP addresses only, while monitoring systems should be deployed to detect anomalous SQL query patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Regular security assessments and code reviews of report definitions should also be conducted to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities in other database interaction components.