CVE-2014-2446 in PeopleSoft Enterprise
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the PeopleSoft Enterprise PT PeopleTools component in Oracle PeopleSoft Products 8.52 and 8.53 allows remote authenticated users to affect confidentiality via vectors related to QAS.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/11/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-2446 resides within the PeopleSoft Enterprise PT PeopleTools component of Oracle PeopleSoft Products, specifically affecting versions 8.52 and 8.53. This represents a security flaw that enables remote authenticated attackers to compromise the confidentiality of data within the system. The vulnerability manifests through vectors associated with QAS, which stands for Query and Analytics Services, indicating that the attack surface involves query processing and data retrieval mechanisms within the PeopleTools framework. The unspecified nature of the vulnerability suggests that the exact technical implementation details were not fully disclosed in the initial CVE description, though the impact on confidentiality remains significant for enterprise environments relying on PeopleSoft applications.
The technical flaw within this vulnerability stems from inadequate security controls in the QAS processing functionality that handles authenticated user requests. When users with valid credentials attempt to interact with query and analytics services, the system fails to properly validate or sanitize input parameters, potentially allowing attackers to extract sensitive information through crafted queries. This weakness likely exists in the way the system processes user-supplied data within the QAS framework, creating an opportunity for unauthorized data disclosure. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and requires authentication, meaning attackers must first establish valid credentials before exploiting the flaw, though this does not significantly reduce the risk given the potential for data exposure.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft, as it can compromise the integrity of enterprise data management systems that rely on PeopleSoft for critical business processes. Organizations utilizing PeopleSoft 8.52 and 8.53 may face unauthorized access to sensitive employee information, financial records, customer data, and other confidential business information through the compromised QAS services. The remote nature of the attack means that threat actors can exploit this vulnerability from outside the corporate network, potentially leading to widespread data breaches affecting multiple business units. This vulnerability directly impacts the confidentiality aspect of the CIA triad and aligns with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation, and may also relate to CWE-502, concerning deserialization of untrusted data, depending on the specific implementation details.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant Oracle security patches released in their critical patch updates, as well as implementing network segmentation to limit access to PeopleSoft systems. Additional controls should focus on monitoring query activities and user access patterns within the QAS services, while also enforcing strict authentication mechanisms and access controls. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of regular security assessments and patch management programs, particularly for enterprise applications with multiple components that may contain interconnected security flaws. Security teams should also consider implementing database activity monitoring solutions to detect anomalous query patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1074 for data staging and T1566 for credential access. Organizations should review their privilege management policies to ensure that users have the minimum required access rights to QAS functionality, reducing the potential impact of successful exploitation and supporting the principle of least privilege as recommended in industry security frameworks.