CVE-2018-19643 in Solutions Business Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Information leakage issue in Micro Focus Solutions Business Manager (SBM) (formerly Serena Business Manager (SBM)) versions prior to 11.5.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/17/2023
The CVE-2018-19643 vulnerability represents a critical information disclosure flaw within Micro Focus Solutions Business Manager platform, formerly known as Serena Business Manager, affecting all versions prior to 11.5. This vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and improper error handling mechanisms within the application's authentication and session management components. The flaw allows unauthorized users to extract sensitive information through crafted requests that bypass normal access controls and reveal internal system details.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when the application fails to properly sanitize user inputs or validate request parameters before processing them through backend services. Attackers can exploit this weakness by submitting specially crafted requests that trigger the application to return detailed error messages or system information that would normally be restricted to authorized personnel. This information leakage can include database connection strings, internal server paths, application configuration details, and potentially even user session information that could be leveraged for further attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it creates a foundation for more sophisticated attacks within the target environment. Security researchers have identified this issue as mapping to CWE-200 (Information Exposure) and CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) within the Common Weakness Enumeration framework. The vulnerability's classification under these categories reflects the fundamental design flaw in how the application processes user-supplied data and handles error conditions. This weakness directly aligns with attack patterns described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under T1083 (File and Directory Discovery) and T1069 (Permission Groups Discovery) techniques, as it enables adversaries to gather intelligence about the system's internal structure and access controls.
Organizations utilizing affected versions of Micro Focus Business Manager face significant risk from this vulnerability, as the information exposure could lead to privilege escalation attempts, lateral movement within the network, or targeted attacks against other system components. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal technical skill and can be automated, making it particularly dangerous in environments where the application serves as a central business process management platform. Security teams should prioritize immediate remediation efforts, including upgrading to version 11.5 or later, implementing network-level protections, and conducting comprehensive security assessments of the affected environment.
Mitigation strategies should encompass both immediate defensive measures and long-term architectural improvements. Organizations should implement web application firewalls to detect and block suspicious requests, configure proper input validation rules at all application entry points, and establish robust logging mechanisms to monitor for exploitation attempts. The vulnerability's nature suggests that regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar weaknesses in related applications. Additionally, implementing proper access control measures and ensuring that error messages do not contain sensitive system information can significantly reduce the attack surface. Security teams should also consider implementing network segmentation to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts and establish incident response procedures specifically addressing information disclosure vulnerabilities.