Oracle patches holes with quarterly security update

Oracle Corp. released a bundle of critical security patches for its software on Tuesday, fixing 89 vulnerabilities in products including its database and application servers and in some PeopleSoft and JD Edwards applications. A work-around exists for just one of the vulnerabilties, according to Oracle. It recommends applying the patches as soon as possible.

The patches are part of Oracle's quarterly security update program, and affect versions of its database software from 8i onwards. Customers covered by Oracle's Extended Maintenance Support or Extended Support plans can download the patches.

The company supplied fixes for 33 vulnerabilities in its database server software, many of them easy to exploit and with wide impact on the confidentiality, integrity or availability of information stored in databases: as bad as it gets in Oracle's security rating system.

Oracle patched 14 flaws in its application server software (four of them fixed by the database server patches, 10 requiring further patches), 13 flaws in its Collaboration Suite, 22 in its E-Business Suite and one in its Enterprise Manager software.

Six of the patches are for PeopleSoft or JD Edwards EnterpriseOne software. There is a work-around for one of these vulnerabilities, which can be fixed by turning off PSOL Manager until the patch is applied.

One of the security vulnerabilities, known as CAN-2005-0873, was already public, Oracle said. According to the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures list, this allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts or HTML into Oracle Reports Server 10g (9.0.4.3.3) via multiple cross-site scripting attacks. Oracle provides few details of the vulnerabilties fixed by the other patches.

More information on Oracle's latest critical patch update can be found at http://www.oracle.com/technology/deploy/security/pdf/cpuoct2005.html.

Oracle plans to release its next update on Jan. 17.