CVE-2018-2455 in Enterprise Financial Services
Summary
by MITRE
SAP Enterprise Financial Services, versions 6.05, 6.06, 6.16, 6.17, 6.18, 8.0 (in business function EAFS_BCA_BUSOPR_SEPA) does not perform necessary authorization checks for an authenticated user, resulting in escalation of privileges.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/22/2020
SAP Enterprise Financial Services represents a critical financial management platform that handles sensitive enterprise financial operations including payment processing and regulatory compliance functions. The vulnerability identified in versions 6.05 through 6.18 and 8.0 affects the EAFS_BCA_BUSOPR_SEPA business function, which specifically manages SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) payment processing operations. This business function operates within the broader Enterprise Financial Services framework and is designed to facilitate cross-border euro payments while maintaining strict regulatory compliance requirements. The affected system components include payment processing modules, transaction authorization workflows, and financial reporting capabilities that require robust access controls to prevent unauthorized modifications to financial data and payment instructions.
The technical flaw manifests as a critical authorization bypass vulnerability within the SEPA payment processing business function. The system fails to properly validate user permissions when processing payment transactions, allowing authenticated users to escalate their privileges without proper authorization checks. This occurs due to insufficient input validation and access control mechanisms within the EAFS_BCA_BUSOPR_SEPA component, where the system assumes all authenticated users have appropriate clearance levels for financial operations. The vulnerability stems from inadequate role-based access control implementation, where the system does not properly verify user entitlements against required security levels for sensitive payment processing activities. This authorization gap creates a pathway for malicious actors to bypass normal access restrictions and perform operations outside their designated permissions, potentially affecting payment processing workflows, transaction approval processes, and financial data integrity.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation to encompass significant financial and regulatory risks. An attacker exploiting this vulnerability could manipulate payment transactions, modify financial records, and potentially execute unauthorized financial operations within the SEPA payment processing environment. This threat scenario directly violates the principle of least privilege and could enable financial fraud, data manipulation, and compliance violations that may affect regulatory reporting requirements under banking and financial services regulations. The vulnerability affects organizations that process cross-border euro payments through SAP Enterprise Financial Services, potentially compromising the integrity of financial data, disrupting payment processing workflows, and creating audit trail issues that could lead to regulatory penalties and financial losses. Organizations using this business function may experience unauthorized access to sensitive financial information, transaction manipulation, and potential disruption of critical payment processing operations that could affect business continuity and customer trust.
Organizations should immediately implement SAP security patches and updates released for this vulnerability, specifically targeting the EAFS_BCA_BUSOPR_SEPA business function within the Enterprise Financial Services module. System administrators must conduct comprehensive access control reviews to identify and remediate any existing unauthorized access that may have occurred through this vulnerability. Security teams should implement enhanced monitoring of payment processing activities and access logs to detect potential exploitation attempts. The mitigation strategy should include role-based access control reinforcement, implementation of additional authorization checks, and regular security assessments of financial processing modules. Organizations should also consider implementing network segmentation to limit access to critical financial processing components and establish incident response procedures specifically addressing financial system compromise scenarios. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and represents a significant concern under ATT&CK technique T1078 (Valid Accounts) and T1548.001 (Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism), as it allows for privilege escalation through legitimate authenticated access paths. The security implications extend to potential compliance violations under financial regulations such as SOX, PCI DSS, and banking regulatory frameworks that mandate strict access controls for financial transaction processing.