Businessobjects Web IntelligenceApplication · Sap

CVE-2023-42474

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-10-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

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
SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence - version 420, has a URL with parameter that could be vulnerable to XSS attack. The attacker could send a malicious link to a user that would possibly allow an attacker to retrieve the sensitive information.

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

SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence version 420 contains a reflected XSS vulnerability in a URL parameter. An attacker can craft a malicious URL containing JavaScript payload that, when clicked by an authenticated user, executes in the context of the user's session, potentially allowing exfiltration of session cookies, credentials, or other sensitive data.

MitigationImplement input validation and output encoding for the vulnerable URL parameter; apply available SAP security patches; consider deploying a web application firewall as an additional layer of defense.

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
Businessobjects Web IntelligenceApplication
Affected:= 420

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
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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 the installed SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence version
    Access the SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise CMC (Central Management Console) or check the installation directory for version information. In the CMC, navigate to the 'About' section or check the version through the system administration interface.
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 420 (build 420)
  2. Confirm the specific build number is 420
    Locate the precise build version in the SAP BusinessObjects documentation, release notes, or the 'Version Info' within the CMC. The vulnerability applies specifically to build 420.
    Affected if The build number is exactly 420, as this is the sole affected version listed in the CVE
  3. Verify the application accepts URL parameters in Web Intelligence
    Access the Web Intelligence interface (typically at /BOE/BI) and observe if URL parameters are used for navigation, report loading, or session handling. Check browser developer tools when interacting with the application to see parameter handling.
    Affected if The application processes URL parameters and the vulnerable parameter is exposed in the request flow
  4. Determine if authentication is required for the affected endpoint
    Confirm that the Web Intelligence application requires user authentication. The CVE states the attack requires an authenticated user to click the malicious URL.
    Affected if Users are authenticated when accessing Web Intelligence, which is the standard configuration and required for this exploit to work
  5. Assess whether users could potentially click externally-sourced URLs
    Evaluate if authenticated users have the ability to access URLs from external sources, email, or shared links that could contain the malicious payload. This is a reflected XSS requiring user interaction.
    Affected if Users can click crafted URLs while authenticated to the Web Intelligence session

Your environment is affected if SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence is installed at exactly version/build 420 and users authenticate to the Web Intelligence interface that processes URL parameters.

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

Implement input validation and output encoding for the vulnerable URL parameter; apply available SAP security patches; consider deploying a web application firewall as an additional layer of defense.

Fix this in Businessobjects Web Intelligence Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2023-42474 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