CVE-2014-7173
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2014-7173 is a critical command injection vulnerability in FarLinX X25 Gateway that allows attackers to execute arbitrary commands on the server by injecting shell metacharacters into specific PHP files. This affects all FarLinX X25 Gateway installations through version 2014-09-25. Attackers can gain complete control of vulnerable systems.
💻 Affected Systems
- FarLinX X25 Gateway
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full system compromise leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, lateral movement within the network, and persistent backdoor installation.
Likely Case
Remote code execution allowing attackers to steal sensitive data, disrupt services, or use the system as a pivot point for further attacks.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper network segmentation, web application firewalls, and input validation are implemented.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation is straightforward using simple HTTP requests with shell metacharacters. Public exploit code exists in security advisories.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Unknown - No official patch identified
Vendor Advisory: No vendor advisory found
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Check if vendor has released updated version after 2014-09-25
2. If available, upgrade to latest version
3. Apply input validation fixes to vulnerable PHP files if source code is accessible
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Web Application Firewall Rules
allBlock requests containing shell metacharacters to vulnerable PHP endpoints
# Example ModSecurity rule: SecRule ARGS "[;|&`$()]" "id:1001,phase:2,deny,msg:'Command Injection Attempt'"
# Example nginx rule: location ~ \.php$ { if ($args ~* [;|&`$()]) { return 403; } }
Access Restriction
linuxBlock external access to vulnerable PHP files
# Apache: <Files "sysSaveMonitorData.php fsx25MonProxy.php syseditdate.php iframeupload.php sysRestoreX25Cplt.php">
Order Deny,Allow
Deny from all
Allow from 192.168.0.0/16
</Files>
# nginx: location ~ /(sysSaveMonitorData|fsx25MonProxy|syseditdate|iframeupload|sysRestoreX25Cplt)\.php$ {
allow 192.168.0.0/16;
deny all;
}
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate the FarLinX X25 Gateway system in a dedicated network segment with strict firewall rules limiting inbound/outbound connections
- Implement network-based intrusion detection/prevention systems to monitor for command injection patterns and block malicious requests
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Test if vulnerable PHP endpoints accept shell metacharacters by sending HTTP requests with parameters containing characters like ;, |, &, `, $, (, )Check Version:
Check web interface or configuration files for version information, or examine file timestamps of vulnerable PHP filesVerify Fix Applied:
Verify that shell metacharacters are properly sanitized or blocked, and that command execution attempts fail📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- HTTP requests to vulnerable PHP files with shell metacharacters in parameters
- Unusual process execution from web server user context
- Failed command execution attempts in web server logs
Network Indicators:
- HTTP POST/GET requests to /sysSaveMonitorData.php, /fsx25MonProxy.php, /syseditdate.php, /iframeupload.php, or /sysRestoreX25Cplt.php with suspicious parameters
- Outbound connections from web server to unexpected destinations
SIEM Query:
source="web_server" AND (uri="*sysSaveMonitorData.php*" OR uri="*fsx25MonProxy.php*" OR uri="*syseditdate.php*" OR uri="*iframeupload.php*" OR uri="*sysRestoreX25Cplt.php*") AND (query="*;*" OR query="*|*" OR query="*&*" OR query="*`*" OR query="*$(*" OR query="*$)*")