CVE-2021-33925
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes an SQL injection vulnerability in the cms-corephp project that allows unauthenticated attackers to bypass authentication and gain escalated privileges via a crafted login request. Any system running the vulnerable version of this CMS is affected. The vulnerability exists in the login mechanism where user input is not properly sanitized before being used in SQL queries.
💻 Affected Systems
- cms-corephp
📦 What is this software?
Cms Corephp by Cms Corephp Project
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete compromise of the CMS installation with administrative access, allowing data theft, defacement, or installation of backdoors.
Likely Case
Unauthenticated attackers gain administrative access to the CMS, enabling content manipulation and potential further system compromise.
If Mitigated
With proper input validation and parameterized queries, the vulnerability would be prevented entirely.
🎯 Exploit Status
SQL injection in login forms is a well-known attack vector with many existing tools and techniques.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Versions after commit bdabe52ef282846823bda102728a35506d0ec8f9
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/nitinp1232/cms-corephp/issues/1
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update to the latest version of cms-corephp from the GitHub repository. 2. Replace all vulnerable files with patched versions. 3. Verify the fix by testing login functionality.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Input Validation Filter
allImplement server-side input validation to sanitize login parameters
Web Application Firewall
allDeploy a WAF with SQL injection protection rules
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement parameterized queries or prepared statements for all database interactions
- Restrict network access to the CMS administration interface using firewall rules
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if your installation uses code from before commit bdabe52ef282846823bda102728a35506d0ec8f9Check Version:
Check git commit history or version files in the installation directoryVerify Fix Applied:
Test login functionality with SQL injection payloads to ensure they are rejected📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual login attempts with SQL syntax in username/password fields
- Multiple failed login attempts from single IPs
Network Indicators:
- HTTP POST requests to login.php containing SQL keywords like UNION, SELECT, OR
SIEM Query:
source="web_logs" AND (uri="/login.php" OR uri="/admin/login") AND (request_body LIKE "%UNION%" OR request_body LIKE "%SELECT%" OR request_body LIKE "%OR%1=1%")