CVE-2015-4788 in Berkeley DB
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Data Store component in Oracle Berkeley DB 11.2.5.1.29, 11.2.5.2.42, 11.2.5.3.28, and 12.1.6.0.35 allows local users to affect integrity and availability via unknown vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-4774 and CVE-2015-4779.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/27/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-4788 represents a significant security flaw within Oracle Berkeley DB's Data Store component affecting multiple version releases including 11.2.5.1.29, 11.2.5.2.42, 11.2.5.3.28, and 12.1.6.0.35. This issue falls under the category of local privilege escalation vulnerabilities that can potentially compromise both data integrity and system availability. The vulnerability's classification as unspecified means that the exact technical details of the flaw were not publicly disclosed at the time of the initial report, creating uncertainty for security professionals attempting to assess risk and implement appropriate mitigations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability places it within the realm of data store component weaknesses that can be exploited by local users who already have access to the system. This characteristic aligns with CWE-264, which encompasses permissions, privileges, and access control issues, and potentially relates to CWE-362, which addresses race conditions that can occur in concurrent environments. The fact that this vulnerability affects integrity and availability specifically indicates that attackers could potentially corrupt data stored within the Berkeley DB environment or cause system disruptions that impact service availability.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-4788 extends beyond simple data corruption as local users with minimal privileges could leverage this flaw to compromise the entire database system. This represents a serious concern for organizations that rely on Berkeley DB for critical data storage operations, particularly in environments where local user access cannot be strictly controlled. The vulnerability's distinction from related CVE-2015-4774 and CVE-2015-4779 suggests that it operates through different attack vectors, indicating multiple pathways for exploitation within the same software component. This multiplicity of attack surfaces increases the overall risk profile and requires comprehensive security assessments to identify all potential exploitation methods.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining strict access controls and implementing proper security monitoring within database environments. The ATT&CK framework categorizes such issues under privilege escalation techniques where adversaries leverage existing system access to gain higher privileges, potentially leading to complete system compromise. Organizations implementing Oracle Berkeley DB should consider implementing additional monitoring and logging mechanisms to detect anomalous behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability's local nature suggests that traditional network-based security controls may not be sufficient to prevent exploitation, requiring attention to host-based security measures and user access controls. Mitigation strategies should include immediate patching of affected versions, implementation of least privilege principles, and regular security assessments to identify similar vulnerabilities within the database infrastructure.