CVE-2021-2277 in Coherence
Summary
by MITRE • 04/23/2021
Vulnerability in the Oracle Coherence product of Oracle Fusion Middleware (component: Core). Supported versions that are affected are 3.7.1.0, 12.1.3.0.0, 12.2.1.3.0, 12.2.1.4.0 and 14.1.1.0.0. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle Coherence. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all Oracle Coherence accessible data. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 7.5 (Confidentiality impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/25/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2021-2277 represents a critical security flaw within Oracle Coherence, a distributed caching and processing platform that forms part of Oracle Fusion Middleware. This vulnerability exists in the Core component of the software and affects multiple version streams including 3.7.1.0, 12.1.3.0.0, 12.2.1.3.0, 12.2.1.4.0, and 14.1.1.0.0, making it particularly concerning given the widespread deployment of these middleware components across enterprise environments. The vulnerability's classification as easily exploitable indicates that attackers can leverage it without requiring specialized skills or privileged access, posing a significant risk to organizations that rely on Oracle Coherence for their data management and caching operations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient authentication mechanisms within the HTTP interface of Oracle Coherence, allowing unauthenticated attackers to gain access to sensitive data and potentially compromise the entire system. The CVSS score of 7.5 reflects the high severity impact, with the confidentiality impact rated as high, indicating that successful exploitation could lead to unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all data accessible through Oracle Coherence. The vulnerability's attack vector is network-based, requiring only HTTP access, which means that any system running affected versions of Oracle Coherence and exposed to the internet or internal networks could be at risk. The lack of requirement for prior authentication or user interaction makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous as it can be exploited automatically by malicious actors scanning for vulnerable systems.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates significant risks for organizations relying on Oracle Coherence for mission-critical applications and data storage. The potential for unauthorized access to sensitive data could result in data breaches, intellectual property theft, and regulatory compliance violations. Organizations using Oracle Coherence for caching sensitive information, session management, or distributed data processing face substantial exposure when running affected versions. The vulnerability's ability to provide complete access to all accessible data means that attackers could potentially compromise entire data ecosystems rather than just individual data points, leading to cascading security incidents that could affect multiple applications and services dependent on the compromised coherence infrastructure.
Security mitigation strategies for CVE-2021-2277 should prioritize immediate patching of affected Oracle Coherence installations with the vendor-provided security updates. Organizations should also implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of Oracle Coherence instances to only trusted networks and applications. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-287 which addresses improper authentication issues, and represents a significant concern from an ATT&CK framework perspective under the Initial Access and Credential Access phases, potentially enabling attackers to establish persistent access to enterprise data systems. Network monitoring and intrusion detection systems should be configured to identify unusual HTTP traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, while organizations should conduct comprehensive inventory assessments to identify all instances of affected Oracle Coherence versions across their infrastructure. Additionally, implementing network-level firewalls and access control lists can provide additional protection layers while awaiting official patches, though these measures should not be considered complete solutions to the vulnerability.