CVE-2018-2728 in Financial Services Funds Transfer Pricing
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Oracle Financial Services Funds Transfer Pricing component of Oracle Financial Services Applications (subcomponent: User Interface). Supported versions that are affected are 6.1.x and 8.0.x. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle Financial Services Funds Transfer Pricing. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker and while the vulnerability is in Oracle Financial Services Funds Transfer Pricing, attacks may significantly impact additional products. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of Oracle Financial Services Funds Transfer Pricing accessible data as well as unauthorized read access to a subset of Oracle Financial Services Funds Transfer Pricing accessible data. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 6.1 (Confidentiality and Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/30/2021
The vulnerability described in CVE-2018-2728 represents a critical security flaw within Oracle Financial Services Applications' Funds Transfer Pricing component, specifically affecting the User Interface subcomponent. This vulnerability exists in Oracle Financial Services Applications versions 6.1.x and 8.0.x, making it a widespread issue across multiple product releases. The flaw manifests as an easily exploitable security weakness that allows unauthenticated attackers to compromise the system through network-based HTTP access, presenting a significant risk to financial institutions relying on these applications for critical banking operations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate authentication mechanisms within the user interface layer of the funds transfer pricing system. Attackers can exploit this weakness without requiring any prior authentication credentials, making the attack surface particularly dangerous. The vulnerability requires only network access via HTTP protocols, which means that attackers can potentially target systems from external networks without needing physical or privileged access. The CVSS 3.0 scoring system rates this vulnerability at 6.1, indicating a medium severity level, though the potential impact on financial data integrity and confidentiality makes it particularly concerning for enterprise security.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond the immediate funds transfer pricing component, as successful exploitation can result in unauthorized modification of data through update, insert, and delete operations. Additionally, attackers can gain unauthorized read access to sensitive financial data subsets, potentially compromising the confidentiality of critical banking information. The requirement for human interaction from a person other than the attacker suggests that social engineering or targeted phishing attacks might be employed to facilitate exploitation, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where user interaction is common. This characteristic aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566 for initial access through spearphishing and potentially T1071 for application layer protocol usage.
The security implications of this vulnerability are significant for financial institutions, as it directly impacts the integrity and confidentiality of funds transfer pricing data. The affected data could include sensitive pricing information, transaction records, and financial models that are crucial for regulatory compliance and business operations. Organizations using affected versions of Oracle Financial Services Applications face potential exposure to data breaches, financial manipulation, and regulatory violations. The cross-product impact mentioned in the vulnerability description indicates that exploitation could potentially affect other Oracle Financial Services products, creating a broader security risk than initially apparent.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-2728 should include immediate implementation of Oracle's security patches and updates for the affected Oracle Financial Services Applications versions. Organizations should also consider network segmentation to limit access to the vulnerable components, implement robust web application firewalls, and establish monitoring procedures to detect unauthorized access attempts. The vulnerability's classification under CWE 79 (Cross-site Scripting) and its potential for privilege escalation through user interaction highlights the need for comprehensive security controls beyond simple patch management. Security teams should conduct thorough vulnerability assessments of their Oracle Financial Services environments and implement additional controls such as intrusion detection systems, access control reviews, and user behavior monitoring to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Regular security awareness training for personnel interacting with these systems can help reduce the risk of social engineering attacks that might facilitate exploitation of this vulnerability.