CVE-2020-14720 in Internet Expenses
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Oracle Internet Expenses product of Oracle E-Business Suite (component: Mobile Expenses Admin Utilities). Supported versions that are affected are 12.2.4-12.2.9. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle Internet Expenses. While the vulnerability is in Oracle Internet Expenses, 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 Internet Expenses accessible data. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 7.7 (Confidentiality impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/31/2020
CVE-2020-14720 represents a critical authentication bypass vulnerability within Oracle Internet Expenses module of the Oracle E-Business Suite ecosystem. This vulnerability specifically affects versions 12.2.4 through 12.2.9 and resides within the Mobile Expenses Admin Utilities component. The flaw stems from insufficient authentication checks that allow low privileged attackers to bypass the standard access controls and gain unauthorized access to sensitive expense data. The vulnerability's exploitability is classified as easily accessible since it can be triggered through standard HTTP network connections, making it particularly dangerous in environments where network exposure is common. This weakness falls under the CWE-287 category of Improper Authentication, which is a fundamental security principle that directly impacts the integrity of access control mechanisms. The CVSS score of 7.7 indicates a high severity level with significant confidentiality impact, demonstrating the potential for attackers to access critical financial data and expense records that could contain sensitive business information.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond the immediate scope of Oracle Internet Expenses and can potentially affect related Oracle E-Business Suite components due to the interconnected nature of these enterprise applications. Attackers who successfully exploit this vulnerability can achieve unauthorized access to all data accessible through the Oracle Internet Expenses module, including employee expense reports, reimbursement details, and financial transaction records. This unauthorized access capability aligns with the ATT&CK framework's privilege escalation tactics, specifically targeting the credential access and persistence domains. The vulnerability's classification as a 'confidentiality impact' vulnerability means that attackers can extract sensitive information without leaving obvious traces, making detection more challenging for security monitoring systems. Organizations utilizing Oracle E-Business Suite in their financial operations face significant risk of data breaches, regulatory compliance violations, and potential financial losses if this vulnerability remains unpatched.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2020-14720 should prioritize immediate patch deployment from Oracle to address the underlying authentication flaw in the Mobile Expenses Admin Utilities component. Network segmentation and access control measures should be implemented to restrict direct HTTP access to the affected Oracle Internet Expenses module, particularly in environments where the application is exposed to external networks. Organizations should also enhance their monitoring capabilities to detect anomalous access patterns and unauthorized data access attempts. Security teams should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify any additional Oracle E-Business Suite components that may share similar authentication weaknesses. The implementation of multi-factor authentication and additional access control layers can provide defense-in-depth measures to protect against exploitation attempts. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to validate the effectiveness of implemented controls and identify potential additional vulnerabilities within the Oracle E-Business Suite environment. Given the critical nature of financial data handled by Oracle Internet Expenses, organizations should also consider implementing data loss prevention solutions to monitor and protect sensitive expense information from unauthorized access or exfiltration attempts.