CVE-2016-3546 in Advanced Collections
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Oracle Advanced Collections component in Oracle E-Business Suite 12.1.1, 12.1.2, and 12.1.3 allows remote attackers to affect confidentiality and integrity via vectors related to Report JSPs.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/07/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-3546 resides within the Oracle Advanced Collections component of the Oracle E-Business Suite, specifically affecting versions 12.1.1, 12.1.2, and 12.1.3. This weakness manifests as an unspecified vulnerability that impacts the confidentiality and integrity of data within the affected systems. The vulnerability is particularly concerning as it enables remote attackers to exploit the system without requiring local access or authentication credentials, making it a significant threat to enterprise environments that rely on Oracle E-Business Suite for critical business operations.
The technical flaw is associated with Report JSPs within the Oracle Advanced Collections component, which represents a server-side scripting vulnerability that allows attackers to manipulate the application's reporting functionality. This type of vulnerability falls under the category of insecure direct object reference or improper input validation issues that can lead to unauthorized data access and modification. The JSP (Java Server Pages) technology used in these reports provides a pathway for malicious actors to inject code or manipulate report parameters, potentially leading to data breaches and system compromise. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation, and represents a classic example of how web application vulnerabilities can escalate to serious security incidents.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data exposure, as it can enable attackers to perform unauthorized modifications to collection data and potentially access sensitive financial information within the Oracle E-Business Suite environment. Organizations utilizing affected versions of Oracle E-Business Suite face significant risks including data integrity compromise, unauthorized access to customer collections data, and potential disruption of business operations. The remote nature of the attack vector means that threat actors can exploit this vulnerability from anywhere on the internet, without requiring physical access to the network or systems. This characteristic makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where the E-Business Suite may be directly exposed to external networks or where insufficient network segmentation exists between internal systems and external attack surfaces.
Security professionals should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant Oracle Critical Patch Updates that address this vulnerability, as well as implementing network segmentation strategies to limit access to the affected components. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under the technique of "Web Application Attack" with potential lateral movement capabilities once initial access is achieved. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls to monitor and filter traffic to the affected JSP endpoints, while conducting thorough vulnerability assessments to identify other potentially exposed components within the Oracle E-Business Suite. Additionally, regular security monitoring and log analysis should be enhanced to detect any suspicious activities related to report generation or data access patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of keeping enterprise applications updated and maintaining comprehensive security controls around critical business systems.