CVE-2019-4308 in Emptoris Sourcing
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Emptoris Sourcing 10.1.0 through 10.1.3, IBM Contract Management 10.1.0 through 10.1.3, and IBM Emptoris Spend Analysis 10.1.0 through 10.1.3 could allow an authenticated user to obtain sensitive information from error messages IBM X-Force ID: 161034.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/27/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-4308 affects multiple IBM enterprise software products including Emptoris Sourcing, Contract Management, and Spend Analysis versions 10.1.0 through 10.1.3. This issue represents a classic information disclosure vulnerability that occurs when the applications fail to properly sanitize error messages before displaying them to authenticated users. The flaw allows an attacker with valid credentials to access potentially sensitive system information through carefully crafted error responses that reveal internal system details.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the improper handling of error conditions within the application's response mechanisms. When the software encounters certain error states during processing, it generates error messages that contain system-specific information such as file paths, database connection details, stack traces, or internal component names. These error messages are then displayed to authenticated users without adequate sanitization, creating an information disclosure vector that can be exploited by malicious actors within the organization.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to enterprise security infrastructure. The sensitive information exposed through error messages can include database schema details, application architecture components, and system configuration elements that would otherwise remain hidden from unauthorized parties. An authenticated attacker could leverage this information to plan more sophisticated attacks against the affected systems, potentially leading to privilege escalation or further exploitation of other vulnerabilities within the same application ecosystem.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-209, which specifically addresses "Information Exposure Through an Error Message," and demonstrates how seemingly minor error handling flaws can create substantial security risks. Attackers following the tactics described in the ATT&CK framework would likely use this information disclosure as an initial reconnaissance step, gathering intelligence that could be used in subsequent phases of an attack. The vulnerability's impact is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where these applications handle sensitive procurement and financial data, making the exposed information potentially valuable for advanced persistent threats.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including proper error message sanitization, disabling detailed error displays for production environments, and implementing comprehensive logging of error conditions for security monitoring purposes. The most effective approach involves configuring the applications to return generic error messages to end users while maintaining detailed logging for administrators to investigate issues without exposing system internals. Additionally, regular security testing and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar error handling vulnerabilities across the enterprise software portfolio, ensuring that all applications follow secure coding practices that prevent information disclosure through error conditions.