CVE-2023-21926 in Health Sciences InForm
Summary
by MITRE • 04/18/2023
Vulnerability in the Oracle Health Sciences InForm product of Oracle Health Sciences Applications (component: Core). Supported versions that are affected are Prior to 6.3.1.3 and Prior to 7.0.0.1. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Oracle Health Sciences InForm executes to compromise Oracle Health Sciences InForm. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all Oracle Health Sciences InForm accessible data. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 5.5 (Confidentiality impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/12/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-21926 represents a significant security weakness within Oracle Health Sciences InForm, a critical component of the Oracle Health Sciences Applications suite designed for clinical data management. This flaw exists in the Core component of the software and affects versions prior to 6.3.1.3 and 7.0.0.1, indicating a widespread impact across multiple release lines of the application. The vulnerability's classification as easily exploitable suggests that attackers can leverage relatively straightforward attack vectors to compromise the system, making it particularly dangerous in production environments where sensitive healthcare data is processed and stored.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient authentication mechanisms that allow unauthenticated attackers with legitimate infrastructure access to compromise the Oracle Health Sciences InForm application. The CVSS score of 5.5 reflects the moderate severity level, with the primary impact being confidentiality-related as attackers can potentially access critical data or achieve complete access to all data accessible through the application. The attack vector AV:L indicates local network access is required, while the low attack complexity AC:L suggests minimal technical expertise is needed for exploitation. The vulnerability requires human interaction from users other than the attacker, meaning social engineering or insider threats may be necessary components for successful exploitation, though the attacker's access to the underlying infrastructure provides a crucial foothold.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data exposure, as it can potentially lead to unauthorized access to sensitive clinical trial data, patient information, and other critical healthcare records managed through the Oracle Health Sciences InForm platform. The confidentiality impact score of HIGH (C:H) indicates that successful exploitation could result in the disclosure of sensitive information that may have serious implications for patient privacy and regulatory compliance. Organizations using affected versions of this software face potential violations of healthcare data protection regulations including HIPAA, GDPR, and other applicable data privacy laws. The vulnerability's potential for complete data access without authentication creates a scenario where attackers could manipulate clinical trial data, potentially compromising the integrity of research studies and the safety of patients enrolled in clinical trials.
Security professionals should prioritize immediate remediation efforts by upgrading to versions 6.3.1.3 or 7.0.0.1 to address this vulnerability, as these releases contain the necessary patches to prevent unauthorized access. Organizations should also implement network segmentation to limit access to systems running Oracle Health Sciences InForm, reduce the attack surface, and monitor for suspicious activities that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-287, which addresses improper authentication issues in software systems, and may map to ATT&CK technique T1078 for valid accounts usage and T1566 for social engineering tactics that could be employed to facilitate exploitation. Additionally, organizations should conduct comprehensive security assessments of their healthcare data management systems to identify similar vulnerabilities that might exist in other components of their health sciences applications portfolio, particularly focusing on authentication controls and access management mechanisms that govern sensitive healthcare data processing environments.