CVE-2017-10394 in PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools component of Oracle PeopleSoft Products (subcomponent: Security). Supported versions that are affected are 8.54, 8.55 and 8.56. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools accessible data and unauthorized ability to cause a partial denial of service (partial DOS) of PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 5.4 (Integrity and Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/19/2021
The CVE-2017-10394 vulnerability resides within Oracle PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools component, specifically in the Security subcomponent that governs access controls and authentication mechanisms. This vulnerability affects multiple versions including 8.54, 8.55, and 8.56, representing a significant security gap in enterprise application security infrastructure. The flaw manifests as a privilege escalation vulnerability that allows attackers with minimal privileges to gain elevated access rights within the PeopleSoft environment. The vulnerability's classification as easily exploitable indicates that the attack vector requires no specialized skills or tools beyond basic network connectivity and standard web browsing capabilities, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where PeopleSoft applications handle sensitive business data.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate access control validation within the PeopleTools security framework, allowing low privileged users to manipulate HTTP requests and bypass authentication mechanisms. This weakness creates a pathway for attackers to perform unauthorized data operations including updates, inserts, and deletes against specific PeopleTools data components. The vulnerability operates at the application layer where HTTP communication occurs, making it accessible through standard network protocols without requiring physical access or specialized exploitation tools. The security flaw represents a failure in the principle of least privilege enforcement, where the system does not properly validate user permissions before executing data modification operations. This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control issues, and demonstrates how weak session management and authorization checks can lead to unauthorized data manipulation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data integrity concerns to include potential service disruption and business continuity issues. Successful exploitation can result in partial denial of service conditions where specific PeopleTools functionalities become unavailable or corrupted, affecting business processes that depend on these systems. The CVSS 3.0 score of 5.4 reflects the balanced risk profile with moderate integrity and availability impacts, indicating that while the vulnerability does not provide complete system compromise, it creates significant operational risks. Organizations may experience unauthorized data modifications that could affect financial reporting, human resources records, or other critical business data. The partial denial of service aspect means that certain application functions may become inaccessible or unreliable, potentially disrupting business operations and requiring emergency maintenance activities.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying Oracle's security patches and updates to affected versions, reviewing and strengthening access controls, and implementing network segmentation to limit exposure. The vulnerability highlights the importance of regular security assessments and vulnerability management processes that can identify and remediate access control weaknesses. Security teams should also consider implementing additional monitoring and logging mechanisms to detect unauthorized access attempts and data modification activities. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under privilege escalation techniques, specifically focusing on the use of application vulnerabilities to gain elevated privileges. Organizations should also review their PeopleSoft application configurations to ensure proper role-based access controls are implemented and regularly audited. Given the vulnerability's network accessibility and low attack complexity, organizations should prioritize patch management processes and consider implementing web application firewalls to monitor and filter HTTP requests targeting PeopleSoft applications.