CVE-2013-5874 in Application Object Library
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Oracle Application Object Library component in Oracle E-Business Suite 11.5.10.2, 12.0.6, 12.1.3, and 12.2.2 allows local users to affect confidentiality via unknown vectors related to Logging.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/06/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-5874 resides within the Oracle Application Object Library component of Oracle E-Business Suite, a critical enterprise resource planning platform that serves as the foundation for numerous business applications. This particular flaw manifests in versions 11.5.10.2, 12.0.6, 12.1.3, and 12.2.2, indicating a widespread impact across multiple release streams of the software suite. The vulnerability specifically relates to the logging functionality within the application object library, which serves as a foundational framework for various Oracle applications. The unspecified nature of the vulnerability vectors suggests that the exact mechanism through which the confidentiality impact occurs has not been fully disclosed in the public domain, though it is clear that local users can exploit this weakness to compromise sensitive data. This type of vulnerability represents a significant concern for enterprise environments where the E-Business Suite is deployed, as it could potentially allow malicious insiders or compromised local accounts to access confidential information that should remain protected.
The technical nature of this vulnerability falls under the category of information disclosure issues, which can be classified as CWE-200 (Information Exposure) or potentially CWE-522 (Insufficiently Protected Credentials) depending on the specific implementation details. The logging component within Oracle Application Object Library is designed to record application events, user activities, and system operations for audit and troubleshooting purposes. However, the flaw suggests that this logging mechanism may not properly protect sensitive data from unauthorized access by local users who have legitimate system access. The impact on confidentiality means that sensitive business data, user credentials, transaction records, or other proprietary information that should be protected within the logging system could potentially be accessed by attackers with local system privileges. This represents a particularly dangerous scenario because local users already have access to the system's file structures and processes, making the vulnerability even more severe as it provides an additional attack vector for privilege escalation or data exfiltration.
The operational impact of CVE-2013-5874 extends beyond simple data exposure, as it fundamentally undermines the security controls that organizations rely upon to protect their sensitive business information within the Oracle E-Business Suite environment. Organizations utilizing affected versions of the E-Business Suite may find that their logging infrastructure, which is typically considered a security control for monitoring and auditing purposes, actually becomes a weakness that can be exploited by local attackers. This vulnerability could enable attackers to gain access to detailed audit trails, user session information, or other sensitive logging data that would normally be protected from unauthorized access. The implications for compliance and regulatory requirements are significant, as many industries have strict regulations governing how sensitive data must be protected, and this vulnerability could potentially lead to violations of data protection standards such as SOX, HIPAA, or PCI DSS. Furthermore, the fact that this vulnerability affects multiple versions of the software suite suggests that organizations may need to urgently assess their entire Oracle E-Business Suite deployment landscape to identify and remediate affected systems.
Organizations should consider implementing several mitigation strategies to address this vulnerability while awaiting official patches from Oracle. The primary recommendation involves applying the relevant security patches and updates released by Oracle to address the specific flaw in the Application Object Library component. Additionally, system administrators should implement enhanced monitoring of logging activities and access patterns to detect any suspicious behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. The principle of least privilege should be strictly enforced, ensuring that local user accounts have only the minimum necessary permissions to perform their required functions, thereby limiting the potential impact of any successful exploitation. Network segmentation and access controls should be strengthened to prevent lateral movement within the environment, even if an attacker has local access to a system. From a defensive perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1070.004 (File Deletion) and T1566.001 (Phishing) in scenarios where attackers might leverage local access to manipulate logging data or use it as a vector for further attacks. Organizations should also consider implementing additional logging and monitoring solutions that can detect anomalies in system access patterns, particularly around logging directories and files, as this may provide early warning signs of exploitation attempts. The vulnerability represents a classic case of inadequate access controls within security-critical system components, emphasizing the importance of proper security architecture design and regular vulnerability assessments to identify and remediate such weaknesses before they can be exploited by malicious actors.