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Weblogic ServerApplication · Oracle

CVE-2023-21960

MEDIUM · 5.6 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-04-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
65/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
Vulnerability in the Oracle WebLogic Server product of Oracle Fusion Middleware (component: Core). Supported versions that are affected are 12.2.1.3.0 and 12.2.1.4.0. Difficult to exploit vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with network access via HTTP to compromise Oracle WebLogic Server. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of Oracle WebLogic Server accessible data as well as unauthorized read access to a subset of Oracle WebLogic Server accessible data and unauthorized ability to cause a partial denial of service (partial DOS) of Oracle WebLogic Server. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 5.6 (Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L).

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

Unauthenticated HTTP-based vulnerability in Oracle WebLogic Server 12.2.1.3.0 and 12.2.1.4.0 Core component allows remote attackers to achieve unauthorized read, insert, update, and delete access to subset of accessible data plus partial denial of service. Exploitation requires network access but has high attack complexity.

MitigationApply Oracle Critical Patch Updates for WebLogic Server; if no patch available, restrict HTTP access to trusted networks only and monitor for suspicious HTTP activity.

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
Weblogic ServerApplication
Affected:= 12.2.1.3.0= 12.2.1.4.0

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
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

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. Confirm Oracle WebLogic Server is installed
    Locate WebLogic installation directories (commonly under $ORACLE_HOME/middleware or /u01/oracle/wlserver) and identify running WebLogic processes using 'ps -ef | grep java' looking for WebLogic server processes
    Affected if WebLogic Server is not present, the system is not affected by this CVE
  2. Verify the exact WebLogic Server version
    Check the version file in the installation directory, typically at PRODUCT_HOME/wlserver_12.2.1/inventory/registry.xml or check the 'java -jar wlserver_12.2.1.jar -verbose' output; alternatively check the Oracle inventory file
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 12.2.1.3.0 or 12.2.1.4.0, the system is affected
  3. Identify exposed HTTP administration ports
    Review WebLogic configuration files (config.xml in the domain config directory) for ListenAddress and ListenPort settings; check if console HTTP port (default 7001) or managed server ports are accessible from untrusted networks using 'netstat -an | grep -E '700[0-9]|800[0-9]''
    Affected if HTTP-based management or application ports are exposed to untrusted network access, exploitation becomes possible
  4. Confirm the Core component is enabled
    Verify the WebLogic Core application is deployed and running by accessing the WLS Console or checking deployed applications via WLST script: 'java weblogic.WLST' then 'ls()' to list deployed components
    Affected if The Core component (identified as 'wls-core-components') is deployed and active, the vulnerability can be triggered

The environment is affected only if Oracle WebLogic Server version 12.2.1.3.0 or 12.2.1.4.0 is installed AND the Core component is running AND HTTP interfaces are network-accessible to attackers.

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 Updates for WebLogic Server; if no patch available, restrict HTTP access to trusted networks only and monitor for suspicious HTTP activity.

Fix this in Weblogic Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2023-21960 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
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