CVE-2022-21369 in PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools
Summary
by MITRE • 01/19/2022
Vulnerability in the PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools product of Oracle PeopleSoft (component: Rich Text Editor). Supported versions that are affected are 8.57, 8.58 and 8.59. 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 3.1 Base Score 6.1 (Confidentiality and Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/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 • 01/25/2022
The vulnerability CVE-2022-21369 represents a critical security flaw within Oracle PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools, specifically within the Rich Text Editor component that affects versions 8.57, 8.58, and 8.59. This vulnerability falls under the Common Weakness Enumeration category CWE-20, which encompasses "Improper Input Validation" and represents a fundamental weakness in input handling that can lead to various security issues including injection attacks and data manipulation. The vulnerability's classification as easily exploitable indicates that attackers can leverage it with minimal technical expertise and without requiring authentication credentials, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where PeopleSoft systems handle sensitive business data and processes.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient validation mechanisms within the Rich Text Editor component, which processes user inputs and content modifications within the PeopleSoft platform. Attackers can exploit this weakness through HTTP network connections without requiring prior authentication, making it a significant threat vector for unauthorized access to enterprise systems. The vulnerability's CVSS score of 6.1 reflects the balance between the attack vector accessibility and the potential impact on both confidentiality and integrity of the system data. The attack requires human interaction from users other than the attacker, suggesting that social engineering or targeted phishing campaigns might be necessary to trigger the exploit, though the underlying technical flaw remains accessible to unauthorized parties.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond the immediate PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools environment, potentially affecting additional products within the Oracle ecosystem that may share data or integration points with the vulnerable component. Successful exploitation can enable attackers to perform unauthorized update, insert, or delete operations on sensitive data within the PeopleSoft platform, while also allowing for unauthorized read access to specific data subsets. This dual impact on both data integrity and confidentiality creates significant risk for organizations relying on PeopleSoft for critical business processes including financial management, human resources, and supply chain operations. The vulnerability's potential to compromise business-critical data makes it particularly concerning for enterprise environments where regulatory compliance and data protection requirements are paramount.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant Oracle security patches and updates as soon as they become available, which would address the underlying input validation issues within the Rich Text Editor component. Network-level controls such as firewalls and access control lists should be configured to limit unnecessary HTTP access to PeopleSoft systems, while monitoring and logging mechanisms should be enhanced to detect suspicious activities related to the Rich Text Editor functionality. Additionally, security awareness training for end users can help mitigate the social engineering aspects that might be required to trigger the vulnerability, as the need for human interaction suggests that targeted user engagement campaigns could be part of exploitation strategies. The vulnerability's classification under the ATT&CK framework would likely map to techniques involving data manipulation and credential access, making it important for security teams to monitor for indicators of compromise related to PeopleSoft system modifications and unauthorized data access patterns.