CVE-2019-2985 in PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools product of Oracle PeopleSoft (component: Fluid Core). Supported versions that are affected are 8.56 and 8.57. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker and while the vulnerability is in PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools, attacks may significantly impact additional products. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools accessible data as well as unauthorized read access to a subset of PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools 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 • 01/15/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-2985 resides within Oracle PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools, specifically within the Fluid Core component of the PeopleSoft suite. This flaw affects versions 8.56 and 8.57, representing a significant security concern for organizations utilizing these enterprise applications. The vulnerability manifests as an easily exploitable flaw that allows unauthenticated attackers to compromise the system through network-based HTTP access, making it particularly dangerous given the widespread use of web-based interfaces in enterprise environments. The attack vector requires minimal privileges from the attacker's perspective, as no authentication is needed to initiate the exploit, though human interaction from an unwitting user is required to complete the successful compromise.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate access controls and authentication mechanisms within the Fluid Core framework, which serves as the foundation for PeopleSoft's modern user interface implementation. This flaw represents a classic case of insufficient authorization checks, where the system fails to properly validate user credentials or session integrity before granting access to sensitive data operations. The vulnerability's classification under CWE-285 (Improper Authorization) demonstrates the fundamental weakness in the authorization model that allows attackers to bypass normal security controls. The CVSS 3.0 scoring of 6.1 reflects the moderate severity of the issue, with the base score indicating that while the attack is not overly complex, it can result in significant data compromise.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond the immediate PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools environment, as the compromised system can potentially affect additional products within the broader PeopleSoft ecosystem. Successful exploitation enables attackers to perform unauthorized data modifications including updates, inserts, and deletes against accessible data within the PeopleTools framework. Additionally, the vulnerability permits unauthorized read access to sensitive data subsets, potentially exposing confidential business information, employee records, or financial data that organizations rely on for their operations. The fact that the vulnerability can impact multiple products within the PeopleSoft suite demonstrates how interconnected enterprise applications can create cascading security risks when a single component contains exploitable flaws.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including network-level access controls to restrict HTTP access to PeopleTools components, deployment of web application firewalls to monitor and filter malicious traffic, and implementation of proper network segmentation to limit lateral movement within the enterprise environment. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1190 (Exploit Public-Facing Application) and T1071.004 (Application Layer Protocol: DNS) as attackers may leverage HTTP protocols to exploit the flaw. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar authorization weaknesses in other enterprise applications, while patch management procedures should be strengthened to ensure timely deployment of security updates. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of user education and awareness programs to prevent social engineering attacks that may require human interaction for successful exploitation.