CVE-2023-28438
📋 TL;DR
This CVE-2023-28438 is a SQL injection vulnerability in Pimcore's reporting feature that allows authenticated users with 'report' permission to execute arbitrary SQL queries via CSRF attacks. Attackers can exploit this by tricking users into clicking malicious links, potentially leading to data manipulation or exfiltration. All Pimcore installations prior to version 10.5.19 are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Pimcore
📦 What is this software?
Pimcore by Pimcore
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete database compromise including data theft, modification, or deletion, and potential privilege escalation to administrative access.
Likely Case
Unauthorized data access and manipulation within the database, potentially exposing sensitive information stored in Pimcore.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper network segmentation and minimal user privileges, though SQL injection could still affect accessible data.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires authenticated user with 'report' permission and social engineering to click malicious link.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 10.5.19
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/security/advisories/GHSA-vf7q-g2pv-jxvx
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Backup your Pimcore installation and database. 2. Update Pimcore to version 10.5.19 via composer: 'composer require pimcore/pimcore:10.5.19'. 3. Clear cache: 'bin/console cache:clear'. 4. Restart your web server.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Manual patch application
allApply the security patch manually without upgrading the entire version
Apply the patch from: https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/commit/d1abadb181c88ebaa4bce1916f9077469d4ea2bc.patch
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Remove 'report' permission from all non-essential users to limit attack surface
- Implement strict input validation and parameterized queries for all custom reporting functionality
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Pimcore version via admin dashboard or run: 'composer show pimcore/pimcore | grep version'Check Version:
composer show pimcore/pimcore | grep versionVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm version is 10.5.19 or higher and verify the reporting endpoint now uses POST method with CSRF protection📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual SQL queries in database logs from reporting endpoints
- Multiple failed login attempts followed by report permission usage
Network Indicators:
- GET requests to reporting endpoints with SQL-like parameters
- Unusual database traffic patterns
SIEM Query:
source="web_logs" AND uri="/admin/reporting/*" AND (method="GET" OR params CONTAINS "SELECT" OR params CONTAINS "UNION")🔗 References
- https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/commit/d1abadb181c88ebaa4bce1916f9077469d4ea2bc.patch
- https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/pull/14526
- https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/security/advisories/GHSA-vf7q-g2pv-jxvx
- https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/commit/d1abadb181c88ebaa4bce1916f9077469d4ea2bc.patch
- https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/pull/14526
- https://github.com/pimcore/pimcore/security/advisories/GHSA-vf7q-g2pv-jxvx
