CVE-2016-0480 in Enterprise Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Oracle Application Testing Suite component in Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control 12.4.0.2 and 12.5.0.2 allows remote attackers to affect confidentiality via unknown vectors related to Test Manager for Web Apps, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-0481, CVE-2016-0482, CVE-2016-0485, and CVE-2016-0486. NOTE: the previous information is from the January 2016 CPU. Oracle has not commented on third-party claims that this is a directory traversal vulnerability in the DownloadServlet servlet, which allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files via directory traversal sequences in the TMAPReportImage parameter.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/04/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-0480 resides within Oracle Application Testing Suite component of Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control, specifically affecting versions 12.4.0.2 and 12.5.0.2. This weakness manifests in the Test Manager for Web Apps functionality and represents a distinct security flaw from several other vulnerabilities within the same advisory cycle. The vulnerability's classification as unspecified in the initial description suggests that Oracle had not yet fully characterized the precise nature of the weakness when first reporting it, though subsequent analysis has indicated this may be related to directory traversal exploits within the DownloadServlet servlet component.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability appears to involve a directory traversal attack vector through the TMAPReportImage parameter within the DownloadServlet servlet. This allows remote attackers to access arbitrary files on the target system by manipulating directory traversal sequences in the parameter value. The attack exploits the lack of proper input validation and sanitization in the servlet's handling of user-supplied parameters, enabling malicious actors to navigate beyond intended file access boundaries. This type of vulnerability falls under the CWE-22 category of Directory Traversal, which represents a well-known and frequently exploited weakness in web applications where insufficient validation of user input allows unauthorized access to files outside the intended directory structure.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends significantly beyond simple information disclosure, as it provides attackers with the capability to access sensitive files that may contain configuration data, credentials, application source code, or other confidential information. The remote nature of the attack means that adversaries do not require physical access to the system or network privileges to exploit the vulnerability, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where such applications are often exposed to untrusted networks. The vulnerability affects the confidentiality aspect of the CIA triad, potentially enabling attackers to gather intelligence for further attacks or to extract sensitive data that could compromise the entire system infrastructure.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant Oracle Critical Patch Updates that address this vulnerability, as well as implementing network-level restrictions to limit access to the affected servlet endpoints. Additional defensive measures include deploying web application firewalls to filter suspicious directory traversal patterns and conducting thorough input validation across all user-supplied parameters. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper parameter validation and access control mechanisms, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1083 for discovering files and directories and T1071 for application layer protocol usage. Security teams should also consider implementing monitoring for anomalous file access patterns and directory traversal attempts in their network traffic analysis systems to detect potential exploitation attempts.