Oracle warns of exploits for latest DB flaws

Customers advised to apply software patches 'without delay'

By Paul Roberts

October 15, 2004 12:00 PM ET

IDG News Service - Oracle Corp. is warning customers to apply software patches it released in August, citing the availability of malicious code that can exploit unpatched vulnerabilities in its software.
The company acknowledged in a recent security alert describing the vulnerabilities that it has received notification that there are published exploits for "some of the issues" addressed in the alert. The company didn't provide information about the exploits.
Oracle didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the reported exploits.
The security holes affect a number of Oracle products, including versions of its 8i, 9i and 10g Database, Application Server and Enterprise Manager software, according to a bulletin (download PDF) posted by Oracle on Aug. 31. The company also released a patch for the vulnerabilities.
The exposure for vulnerabilities in Oracle's Database Server and Application Server was described as "high" because attackers could take advantage of the flaws with network access but without a valid user account and password. The hole in Enterprise Manager was rated a "medium" risk, because attackers would need both access to the network running the Enterprise Manager and a valid operating system user account on the machine running Enterprise Manager, Oracle said.
In September, the U.S. government's Computer Emergency Readiness Team issued an alert about the flaws, noting that they could be used to shut down or take control of vulnerable systems running the software or to corrupt or steal data from the Oracle databases.
Oracle strongly recommends that affected customers apply the software patches "without delay."

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