CVE-2020-2956 in Human Resources
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Oracle Human Resources product of Oracle E-Business Suite (component: Hierarchy Diagrammers). Supported versions that are affected are 12.1.1-12.1.3 and 12.2.3-12.2.9. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle Human Resources. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized creation, deletion or modification access to critical data or all Oracle Human Resources accessible data as well as unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all Oracle Human Resources accessible data. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 8.1 (Confidentiality and Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/21/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-2956 represents a significant security weakness within Oracle E-Business Suite's Human Resources module, specifically affecting the Hierarchy Diagrammers component. This flaw exists in multiple version ranges including 12.1.1 through 12.1.3 and 12.2.3 through 12.2.9, making it a widespread concern for organizations utilizing these Oracle EBS releases. The vulnerability's classification as easily exploitable indicates that attackers with minimal privileges and network access can leverage this weakness to compromise the entire Human Resources subsystem. The attack vector operates through HTTP network connections, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited remotely without requiring physical access to the system infrastructure.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and access control mechanisms within the Hierarchy Diagrammers functionality. This weakness allows authenticated attackers with low privilege accounts to manipulate the system's data handling processes and potentially escalate their access rights. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple data modification to include complete data compromise, where attackers can create, delete, or modify critical human resources information. The CVSS 3.0 score of 8.1 reflects the high severity of this flaw, particularly emphasizing the confidentiality and integrity impacts that can result from successful exploitation. The vector notation CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N indicates that the attack requires network access, low complexity, only low privilege authentication, no user interaction, and affects the entire system scope.
The operational consequences of this vulnerability are severe for organizations relying on Oracle E-Business Suite for their human resources management. Successful exploitation can lead to unauthorized access to sensitive employee data, payroll information, and other critical human resources records that organizations typically consider highly confidential. The potential for data modification creates risks of financial fraud, identity theft, and regulatory compliance violations that could result in substantial financial losses and legal consequences. Organizations may face audit failures and regulatory penalties if employee data integrity is compromised, particularly in industries subject to strict data protection regulations such as healthcare, finance, or government sectors. The vulnerability's ability to provide complete access to all Oracle Human Resources accessible data means that attackers can potentially exfiltrate entire employee databases, undermining the organization's data security posture.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2020-2956 should prioritize immediate patch application from Oracle as the primary defense mechanism. Organizations must ensure that all affected Oracle EBS instances are updated to versions that contain the necessary security fixes. Network segmentation and access control measures should be implemented to limit exposure of the vulnerable components to untrusted networks. The principle of least privilege should be enforced more strictly, ensuring that only authorized personnel have access to Human Resources functionality. Monitoring and logging of access attempts to the Hierarchy Diagrammers component should be enhanced to detect potential exploitation attempts. Security teams should implement network intrusion detection systems to identify suspicious HTTP traffic patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar weaknesses in other Oracle EBS components. Organizations should also consider implementing database activity monitoring solutions to track unauthorized data access and modification activities that could result from this vulnerability. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and may be categorized under ATT&CK techniques related to privilege escalation and data access.