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Database 10gDatabase / datastore · Oracle

CVE-2008-3983

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2008-10-14
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
61/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Unspecified vulnerability in the Workspace Manager component in Oracle Database 9.2.0.8, 9.2.0.8DV, 10.1.0.5, 10.2.0.3, and 11.1.0.6 allows remote authenticated users to affect confidentiality and integrity, related to SYS.LT and WMSYS.LT, a different vulnerability than CVE-2008-3982 and CVE-2008-3984.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

Vulnerability in Oracle Database Workspace Manager component affecting SYS.LT and WMSYS.LT packages in versions 9.2.0.8, 9.2.0.8DV, 10.1.0.5, 10.2.0.3, and 11.1.0.6. Allows remote authenticated users to impact confidentiality and integrity, likely through SQL injection or improper privilege handling in these system packages.

MitigationApply Oracle Critical Patch Update (October 2008 or later) that addresses this Workspace Manager vulnerability in SYS.LT/WMSYS.LT packages. If patching is not immediately feasible, restrict network access to database listeners and review privileges granted to non-admin users on these packages.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Database 10gDatabase / datastore
Affected:= 10.1.0.5= 10.2.0.3
Database 11iDatabase / datastore
Affected:= 11.1.0.6
Database 9iDatabase / datastore
Affected:= 9.2.0.8= 9.2.0.8dv

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Authentication
Single
Confidentiality
Partial
Integrity
Partial
Availability
None

AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Oracle Database version
    Connect to the database as a privileged user and run: SELECT VERSION FROM PRODUCT_COMPONENT_VERSION WHERE PRODUCT LIKE 'Oracle%'; or check the oratab /etc/oratab file for the installed Oracle home and version.
    Affected if The version matches 9.2.0.8, 9.2.0.8DV, 10.1.0.5, 10.2.0.3, or 11.1.0.6.
  2. Verify Workspace Manager is installed
    Query DBA_OBJECTS for existence of SYS.LT and WMSYS.LT package objects: SELECT owner, object_name, object_type FROM DBA_OBJECTS WHERE object_name IN ('LT', 'WMSYS.LT') AND object_type LIKE '%PACKAGE%';
    Affected if Both SYS.LT and WMSYS.LT packages exist in the database.
  3. Check public execute privileges on vulnerable packages
    Query DBA_TAB_PRIVS for execute permissions: SELECT grantee, owner, table_name, privilege FROM DBA_TAB_PRIVS WHERE table_name IN ('LT', 'WMSYS.LT') AND privilege = 'EXECUTE';
    Affected if Non-SYS users (especially PUBLIC or application users) have EXECUTE privilege on SYS.LT or WMSYS.LT.
  4. Review direct grants to PUBLIC on SYS schema objects
    Run: SELECT owner, table_name, privilege FROM DBA_TAB_PRIVS WHERE grantee = 'PUBLIC' AND owner = 'SYS' AND table_name LIKE 'LT%';
    Affected if PUBLIC has been granted any privilege on LT-related objects in SYS schema.
  5. Audit recent executions of SYS.LT or WMSYS.LT procedures
    If auditing is enabled, query AUD$ for recent activity: SELECT timestamp, username, obj_name, action_name FROM DBA_AUDIT_TRAIL WHERE obj_name IN ('LT','WMSYS.LT') ORDER BY timestamp DESC; Or check listener logs for suspicious SQL injection patterns.
    Affected if Unusual or unauthorized calls to these packages are observed from non-DBA accounts.

The environment is affected if the Oracle Database version is exactly 9.2.0.8, 9.2.0.8DV, 10.1.0.5, 10.2.0.3, or 11.1.0.6 AND the Workspace Manager SYS.LT/WMSYS.LT packages are installed with execute privileges granted to non-admin users.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply Oracle Critical Patch Update (October 2008 or later) that addresses this Workspace Manager vulnerability in SYS.LT/WMSYS.LT packages. If patching is not immediately feasible, restrict network access to database listeners and review privileges granted to non-admin users on these packages.

Fix this in Database 10g Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2008-3983 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data