CVE-2018-3189 in E-Business Suite
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Oracle Customer Interaction History component of Oracle E-Business Suite (subcomponent: Outcome-Result). Supported versions that are affected are 12.1.1, 12.1.2 and 12.1.3. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle Customer Interaction History. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker and while the vulnerability is in Oracle Customer Interaction History, attacks may significantly impact additional products. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all Oracle Customer Interaction History accessible data as well as unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of Oracle Customer Interaction History accessible data. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 8.2 (Confidentiality and Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/25/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-3189 resides within the Oracle Customer Interaction History component of Oracle E-Business Suite, specifically within the Outcome-Result subcomponent. This weakness affects Oracle E-Business Suite versions 12.1.1, 12.1.2, and 12.1.3, representing a critical security gap that exposes organizations to significant risk. The vulnerability operates within the context of a web-based attack surface, making it particularly dangerous as it allows exploitation through standard HTTP network protocols without requiring authentication credentials from the attacker's perspective. This characteristic places the vulnerability in the category of easily exploitable weaknesses that can be leveraged by threat actors with minimal technical sophistication.
The technical flaw manifests as an insufficient access control mechanism within the Oracle Customer Interaction History component, specifically when processing requests through the Outcome-Result subcomponent. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious HTTP requests that bypass normal authentication and authorization checks. The vulnerability's design flaw allows for unauthorized access to sensitive customer interaction data, including comprehensive historical records of customer communications and business outcomes. This access control failure is particularly concerning because it affects the core data management functionality of the E-Business Suite, potentially exposing organizations to data breaches that could compromise customer privacy and business operations. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond the immediate component, as successful exploitation can lead to cascading effects across related Oracle products within the suite.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, with potential consequences extending far beyond simple data theft. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can achieve unauthorized access to critical customer interaction data, potentially compromising sensitive business information that could include personal customer details, business outcomes, and interaction histories. The CVSS 3.0 base score of 8.2 reflects the high severity of this weakness, particularly given the confidentiality and integrity impacts it can cause. The vulnerability allows for unauthorized update, insert, or delete operations on accessible data, meaning that attackers could not only read sensitive information but also modify or destroy it, potentially causing significant business disruption. The requirement for human interaction from a person other than the attacker indicates that social engineering or targeted phishing attacks may be necessary to successfully exploit the vulnerability, though this does not diminish its overall risk profile. Organizations using affected versions of Oracle E-Business Suite face substantial risk of data compromise and potential regulatory violations, particularly in industries subject to data protection regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-3189 should focus on immediate patch management and network-level security controls. Organizations must prioritize applying Oracle's security patches and updates specifically designed to address this vulnerability, as these patches typically contain fixes for the underlying access control flaws. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be implemented to restrict access to Oracle E-Business Suite components, particularly limiting HTTP access to authorized personnel only. Additional security measures include implementing web application firewalls to monitor and filter HTTP requests, conducting regular vulnerability assessments to identify potential exploitation vectors, and establishing robust network monitoring to detect unusual access patterns. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which describes improper access control issues, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1190 for exploitation of remote services, emphasizing the need for both defensive and detection-oriented security controls. Regular security awareness training for personnel is also essential to reduce the risk of social engineering attacks that may be necessary to exploit this vulnerability, while maintaining comprehensive audit trails and access logging to facilitate incident response and forensic analysis.