CVE-2022-26982
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows remote authenticated administrators in SimpleMachinesForum to execute arbitrary PHP code by modifying themes. It affects SimpleMachinesForum versions 2.1.1 and earlier. The vendor considers this intended functionality since administrators have full control over theme modifications.
💻 Affected Systems
- SimpleMachinesForum
📦 What is this software?
Simple Machines Forum by Simplemachines
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete server compromise allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code, access sensitive data, install malware, or pivot to other systems.
Likely Case
Administrator accounts being compromised leading to unauthorized code execution, data theft, or forum defacement.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper access controls restrict administrator privileges to trusted personnel only.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploit code is publicly available. Requires administrator credentials to exploit.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: N/A
Vendor Advisory: N/A
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
No official patch available. The vendor considers this intended functionality. Consider upgrading to newer versions if available or implementing workarounds.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict Administrator Access
allLimit administrator accounts to only trusted personnel and implement strong authentication controls.
Implement Web Application Firewall
allDeploy WAF rules to detect and block PHP code injection attempts in theme modifications.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict access controls and monitor administrator account activity
- Regularly audit theme files for unauthorized PHP code modifications
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check SimpleMachinesForum version. If version is 2.1.1 or earlier, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Check forum settings or admin panel for version informationVerify Fix Applied:
Verify administrator accounts are properly secured and monitor theme modification logs.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual theme file modifications
- Administrator account logins from unexpected locations
- PHP execution errors in web server logs
Network Indicators:
- HTTP POST requests to theme modification endpoints with PHP code
SIEM Query:
source="web_server" AND ("theme" OR "template") AND ("php" OR "eval" OR "exec")🔗 References
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/171486/SimpleMachinesForum-2.1.1-Remote-Code-Execution.html
- https://github.com/sartlabs/0days/blob/main/SimpleMachinesForum/Exploit.txt
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/171486/SimpleMachinesForum-2.1.1-Remote-Code-Execution.html
- https://github.com/sartlabs/0days/blob/main/SimpleMachinesForum/Exploit.txt
