CVE-2021-34244
📋 TL;DR
This CSRF vulnerability in Ice Hrm 29.0.0.OS allows attackers to create new administrator accounts or change existing user passwords without authorization. It affects organizations using the vulnerable version of Ice Hrm, potentially leading to complete system compromise.
💻 Affected Systems
- Ice Hrm
📦 What is this software?
Icehrm by Icehrm
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete account takeover, creation of new admin accounts, privilege escalation, and full system compromise leading to data theft or ransomware deployment.
Likely Case
Attackers create backdoor admin accounts or reset passwords to gain unauthorized access, potentially leading to data exfiltration or further internal attacks.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper CSRF protections, though some risk remains if other vulnerabilities exist.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires the victim to be logged in as an admin or have sufficient privileges; public proof-of-concept demonstrates the attack.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 29.0.1.OS or later
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/gamonoid/icehrm/releases
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Backup your current installation. 2. Download the latest version from the official repository. 3. Replace the vulnerable files with patched ones. 4. Verify the update by checking the version.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Implement CSRF Tokens
allAdd anti-CSRF tokens to all state-changing requests in the application.
Use SameSite Cookies
allConfigure session cookies with SameSite=Strict attribute to prevent CSRF attacks.
Set-Cookie: session=value; SameSite=Strict; Secure; HttpOnly
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with CSRF protection rules.
- Restrict access to the Ice Hrm application to trusted networks only.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check the Ice Hrm version in the admin panel or configuration files; if it's 29.0.0.OS, it is vulnerable.Check Version:
Check the version in the admin dashboard or review the application's version file.Verify Fix Applied:
After patching, verify the version is 29.0.1.OS or later and test CSRF protection by attempting to replicate the exploit.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual admin account creation events
- Multiple password reset requests from single IP
- CSRF token validation failures
Network Indicators:
- POST requests to user management endpoints without referrer headers
- Suspicious cross-origin requests
SIEM Query:
source="icehrm_logs" AND (event="admin_created" OR event="password_reset") | stats count by src_ip