CVE-2018-16956 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3 allows for a Denial of Service (DoS) attack due to improper page renaming validation.

Understanding CVE-2018-16956

This CVE involves a vulnerability in the page renaming process within the Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3, potentially leading to a DoS attack.

What is CVE-2018-16956?

The vulnerability arises from the lack of validation for page names during the renaming process in the Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3. This oversight allows pages to be renamed with characters that are not supported in URIs by the web server hosting the software.

The Impact of CVE-2018-16956

If pages are renamed with unsupported characters, such as 0x7f, they become inaccessible over the web server. This inaccessibility can result in a Denial of Service (DoS) for the affected page.

Technical Details of CVE-2018-16956

The technical aspects of this CVE provide insight into the vulnerability and its implications.

Vulnerability Description

The AjaxControl component of Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3 fails to validate page names during the renaming process, allowing unsupported characters that can lead to a DoS attack.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3
Vendor: Oracle
Versions: All versions of Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3

Exploitation Mechanism

The vulnerability can be exploited by renaming pages with characters not supported in URIs by the web server, causing a DoS condition for the affected page.

Mitigation and Prevention

Addressing CVE-2018-16956 requires immediate actions and long-term security measures.

Immediate Steps to Take

Avoid renaming pages with unsupported characters in the Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal 10.3.3.
Regularly monitor and audit page renaming activities to detect any suspicious behavior.

Long-Term Security Practices

Implement input validation mechanisms to ensure that only supported characters are used in page names.
Keep software up to date and consider transitioning to supported versions of Oracle products.

Patching and Updates

As Oracle WebCenter Interaction Portal is no longer supported, consider alternative solutions or custom patches to mitigate the vulnerability.