CVE-2005-3438 in Database Server
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple unspecified vulnerabilities in Oracle Database Server 9i up to 10.1.0.4.2 have unknown impact and attack vectors, aka Oracle Vuln# (1) DB04 in Change Data Capture; (2) DB06 in Data Guard Logical Standby; (3) DB10 in Locale; (4) DB12 in Materialized Views; (5) DB13 in Objects Extension; (6) DB15 in Oracle Label Security; (7) DB27 in Security, possibly due to a buffer overflow in sys.pbsde.init; and (8) DB28 and (9) DB29 in Workspace Manager.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/20/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-3438 represents a collection of multiple unspecified security flaws within Oracle Database Server versions 9i through 10.1.0.4.2, collectively known as Oracle Vuln# with various identifiers including DB04 through DB29. These vulnerabilities span multiple database components and functionality areas, indicating a systemic security weakness that could potentially affect database integrity, availability, and confidentiality. The lack of specific details regarding impact and attack vectors in the initial description suggests that these vulnerabilities were either recently discovered or deliberately obscured to prevent premature exploitation, which is a common practice in zero-day vulnerability disclosures.
The technical nature of these vulnerabilities appears to encompass several distinct database subsystems, with DB04 in Change Data Capture suggesting issues within database change tracking mechanisms, while DB06 in Data Guard Logical Standby points to potential problems in database replication and standby server operations. The DB10 vulnerability in Locale functionality indicates possible internationalization and localization issues that could be exploited for privilege escalation or data manipulation. DB12 in Materialized Views suggests problems with database performance optimization features, while DB13 in Objects Extension points to potential object-oriented database functionality flaws. The DB15 vulnerability in Oracle Label Security, which is a critical access control mechanism, indicates possible bypasses of security policies and data classification controls. The buffer overflow vulnerability in sys.pbsde.init, identified as DB27 in Security, represents a particularly dangerous flaw that could allow arbitrary code execution through memory corruption, while DB28 and DB29 in Workspace Manager suggest issues within database version control and collaborative development features.
The operational impact of these vulnerabilities could be substantial, potentially allowing attackers to gain unauthorized access to sensitive database information, manipulate data integrity, or disrupt database operations. The buffer overflow in sys.pbsde.init, classified under CWE-121 as a stack-based buffer overflow, presents a critical risk for remote code execution attacks, which aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter. The vulnerabilities affecting Oracle Label Security (DB15) could compromise data classification and access control policies, potentially enabling privilege escalation attacks and unauthorized data access. The presence of multiple vulnerabilities across different database components suggests that attackers could chain these exploits to achieve broader system compromise, with the Change Data Capture and Data Guard Logical Standby vulnerabilities potentially allowing for persistent backdoor access or data exfiltration. These issues could also affect database availability through denial of service attacks targeting specific database features.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate patch application for the affected Oracle Database versions, as these vulnerabilities represent security flaws that have been documented and patched by Oracle. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to database servers and employ principle of least privilege access controls for database users and applications. The buffer overflow vulnerability specifically requires immediate attention through patching, as it represents a critical exploit that could lead to complete system compromise. Database administrators should also implement monitoring solutions to detect anomalous database activity that could indicate exploitation attempts, particularly focusing on changes in database security policies, unauthorized access attempts, and unusual data manipulation patterns. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify any additional unpatched vulnerabilities, while incident response procedures should be updated to address potential exploitation of these database security flaws. The vulnerabilities should be tracked through appropriate vulnerability management systems and prioritized based on risk assessment and potential business impact.