CVE-2022-21577 in FLEXCUBE Universal Banking
Summary
by MITRE • 07/20/2022
Vulnerability in the Oracle FLEXCUBE Universal Banking product of Oracle Financial Services Applications (component: Infrastructure). Supported versions that are affected are 12.1-12.4, 14.0-14.3 and 14.5. Difficult to exploit vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle FLEXCUBE Universal Banking. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized creation, deletion or modification access to critical data or all Oracle FLEXCUBE Universal Banking accessible data as well as unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all Oracle FLEXCUBE Universal Banking accessible data. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 6.4 (Confidentiality and Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/13/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-21577 represents a significant security weakness within Oracle FLEXCUBE Universal Banking, a comprehensive financial services application platform widely deployed in banking and financial institutions globally. This vulnerability exists within the infrastructure component of the Oracle Financial Services Applications suite and affects multiple version ranges including 12.1 through 12.4, 14.0 through 14.3, and 14.5. The affected system operates as a critical financial backend infrastructure that handles sensitive banking operations and customer data, making it a prime target for malicious actors seeking unauthorized access to financial systems.
The technical flaw manifests as a difficulty to exploit condition that requires a low privileged attacker to gain network access through HTTP protocols to compromise the system. This vulnerability's exploitation pathway demonstrates a classic privilege escalation scenario where an attacker with minimal initial access can potentially leverage the flaw to achieve unauthorized modifications to critical financial data. The CVSS 3.1 scoring system assigns this vulnerability a base score of 6.4, indicating a medium to high severity threat with significant impacts to both confidentiality and integrity of the affected systems. The attack vector requires network access with high complexity, low privilege requirements, and human interaction, suggesting that the vulnerability may be exploitable through social engineering or targeted phishing campaigns that require user participation.
The operational impact of successful exploitation of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple data theft, as it can enable attackers to perform unauthorized creation, deletion, or modification operations against all data accessible through the Oracle FLEXCUBE Universal Banking platform. This comprehensive access capability represents a severe risk to financial institutions as it could allow malicious actors to alter transaction records, manipulate customer accounts, or corrupt critical financial databases. The potential for unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all system data creates a substantial threat to financial integrity and regulatory compliance, particularly concerning the protection of sensitive customer information and financial transaction records.
Security professionals should consider this vulnerability in the context of the MITRE ATT&CK framework, where such weaknesses often map to techniques involving privilege escalation and data manipulation. The requirement for human interaction suggests potential exploitation through spear-phishing or targeted social engineering campaigns that could bypass traditional network security controls. Organizations should implement robust network monitoring and access controls to detect anomalous HTTP traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability's classification under CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration) categories related to insufficient input validation and improper access control further emphasizes the need for comprehensive security hardening measures including regular security assessments, network segmentation, and strict access controls.
Mitigation strategies should include immediate deployment of Oracle's security patches and updates for all affected versions of the FLEXCUBE Universal Banking platform, along with implementation of network access controls to restrict HTTP access to critical infrastructure components. Organizations should conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify any additional weaknesses in their financial application environments and establish enhanced monitoring procedures for detecting unauthorized data modification activities. Regular security awareness training for personnel who interact with financial systems can help reduce the risk of successful social engineering exploitation. Additionally, implementing proper network segmentation and access control measures can limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts, while maintaining comprehensive audit trails and logging capabilities to detect and respond to unauthorized activities.