CVE-2011-2279 in PeopleSoft Products
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the PeopleSoft Enterprise HRMS component in Oracle PeopleSoft Products 9.1, Bundle, and #6 allows remote authenticated users to affect confidentiality and integrity via unknown vectors related to Talent Acquisition Manager.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/28/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-2279 resides within the PeopleSoft Enterprise HRMS component of Oracle PeopleSoft Products version 9.1, specifically affecting the Talent Acquisition Manager functionality. This unspecified weakness represents a critical security flaw that enables remote authenticated attackers to compromise both the confidentiality and integrity of data within the system. The vulnerability's impact extends across multiple Oracle PeopleSoft product variants including the standard 9.1 release, bundle versions, and specific build #6, indicating a widespread issue affecting various deployment configurations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate access controls and potential input validation failures within the Talent Acquisition Manager module. While the exact vector remains unspecified, the classification suggests a weakness in authentication mechanisms, authorization checks, or data processing routines that could allow attackers with valid credentials to perform unauthorized operations. This flaw likely exists in the way the system handles user requests or processes sensitive data within the recruitment management workflows. The vulnerability's classification as affecting both confidentiality and integrity aligns with common security principles where unauthorized data access and modification capabilities can coexist within a single flaw, often stemming from insufficient validation or improper privilege enforcement.
From an operational perspective, the implications of this vulnerability are severe for organizations utilizing Oracle PeopleSoft HRMS solutions. Attackers who successfully exploit this weakness could potentially access sensitive employee recruitment data, modify candidate information, manipulate hiring workflows, or gain unauthorized access to confidential personnel records. The remote nature of the attack vector means that threat actors do not require physical access to the system or local network presence, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments with internet-facing applications. The authenticated requirement suggests that attackers must first obtain legitimate user credentials, but once achieved, they can leverage this vulnerability to escalate their privileges or access restricted functionality within the Talent Acquisition Manager.
Organizations affected by CVE-2011-2279 should implement immediate mitigations including applying available Oracle security patches, reviewing and strengthening authentication mechanisms, implementing network segmentation to limit access to critical HRMS components, and conducting thorough access control reviews. The vulnerability's classification aligns with common CWE categories related to improper access control and insufficient input validation, typically mapped to CWE-284 for improper access control and CWE-20 for improper input validation. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability could be leveraged during the privilege escalation and persistence phases, potentially allowing attackers to maintain access while expanding their capabilities within the target environment. Organizations should also consider implementing comprehensive monitoring solutions to detect anomalous access patterns and unauthorized modifications to recruitment data. The vulnerability's widespread impact across multiple product variants underscores the importance of thorough vulnerability assessment and patch management processes across all Oracle PeopleSoft installations within an organization's infrastructure.