CVE-2011-2308 in E-Business Suite
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Oracle Application Object Library component in Oracle E-Business Suite 12.0.6, 12.1.2, and 12.1.3 allows remote attackers to affect integrity via unknown vectors related to Online Help.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/06/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-2308 resides within the Oracle Application Object Library component of Oracle E-Business Suite versions 12.0.6, 12.1.2, and 12.1.3. This flaw specifically impacts the Online Help functionality and represents an unspecified weakness that enables remote attackers to compromise system integrity. The Oracle Application Object Library serves as a foundational framework for the E-Business Suite, providing common application objects and services that support various business applications within the suite. The Online Help component, while designed to assist users with navigation and functionality, becomes a potential attack vector due to insufficient security controls in its implementation. This vulnerability falls under the category of integrity breaches, meaning attackers could potentially modify or manipulate data within the system without proper authorization.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and access control mechanisms within the Online Help subsystem. Attackers can exploit this weakness through remote connections to manipulate the help system, potentially leading to unauthorized data modification or system state alteration. The unspecified nature of the vulnerability vectors suggests that the exact exploitation methods remain undisclosed, though the impact affects the integrity of the system's data and operations. This type of vulnerability typically arises from insufficient sanitization of user inputs or inadequate privilege checks when processing help-related requests. The Online Help functionality may accept malformed inputs or process requests without proper authentication verification, creating opportunities for malicious actors to inject unauthorized modifications.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations utilizing Oracle E-Business Suite in production environments. The ability to affect system integrity remotely means that attackers could potentially corrupt critical business data, alter transaction records, or manipulate system configurations through the help system interface. The impact extends beyond simple data corruption as it may enable further exploitation pathways or facilitate privilege escalation attacks. Organizations relying on these suite versions face potential business disruption, regulatory compliance issues, and financial losses due to data integrity compromises. The vulnerability's remote exploitability means that attackers do not require physical access or local network presence, making it particularly dangerous for systems connected to the internet or exposed to external networks.
Security mitigations for CVE-2011-2308 should prioritize immediate patch application from Oracle, as this represents a critical integrity vulnerability in enterprise business applications. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to the affected E-Business Suite components and restrict remote access to the Online Help functionality. Access controls should be enhanced to ensure that only authorized personnel can interact with help system components, while input validation mechanisms should be strengthened to prevent malformed requests from being processed. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-200 (Information Exposure) and CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) categories, representing weaknesses in both data protection and access control mechanisms. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving privilege escalation and data manipulation, potentially enabling adversaries to establish persistent access and maintain control over affected systems. Organizations should also consider implementing network monitoring and intrusion detection systems to identify potential exploitation attempts targeting the Online Help component.