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CVE-2023-38880

9.8 CRITICAL
Authentication Bypass

📋 TL;DR

This vulnerability allows unauthenticated attackers to download full database backups containing sensitive information like password hashes. It affects OS4ED's openSIS Classic Community Edition version 9.0 due to predictable backup file names and improper access controls. Any system running this software with database backup functionality enabled is vulnerable.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:
  • OS4ED openSIS Classic Community Edition
Versions: Version 9.0
Operating Systems: Any OS running openSIS Classic
Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes
Notes: Only affects systems where database backup functionality is used. The vulnerability exists in the backup storage location and naming convention.

📦 What is this software?

Opensis by Os4ed

View all CVEs affecting Opensis →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Complete database compromise including password hashes, student records, staff information, and other sensitive educational data leading to identity theft, credential reuse attacks, and data manipulation.

🟠

Likely Case

Unauthenticated attackers download database backups containing password hashes, enabling offline cracking and potential account takeover.

🟢

If Mitigated

No impact if backups are stored outside web root with proper access controls and unpredictable file names.

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH - Any internet-facing instance is directly exploitable by unauthenticated attackers.
🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal attackers or compromised internal systems can still exploit this vulnerability.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ⚠️ Yes
Weaponized: LIKELY
Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes
Complexity: LOW

Exploitation requires guessing backup file names based on date format, which is trivial. No authentication or special privileges needed.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Unknown

Vendor Advisory: https://www.os4ed.com/

Restart Required: No

Instructions:

No official patch available. Check vendor website for updates. Consider upgrading to newer versions if available.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Move backup files outside web root

all

Configure backup functionality to store files outside the web-accessible directory

Modify backup script to use directory like /var/backups/opensis/ instead of web root

Implement .htaccess restrictions

linux

Restrict access to backup files using web server configuration

Create .htaccess file in backup directory with: Order Deny,Allow
Deny from all

🧯 If You Can't Patch

  • Disable database backup functionality entirely if not needed
  • Implement web application firewall rules to block access to files matching 'opensisBackup*.sql' pattern

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check if backup files exist in web root with names like 'opensisBackupMM-DD-YYYY.sql' and are accessible without authentication via URL like http://[host]/opensisBackup07-20-2023.sql

Check Version:

Check openSIS version in admin panel or application configuration files

Verify Fix Applied:

Attempt to access backup files via web browser or curl without authentication - should receive 403/404 error

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

  • HTTP 200 requests to files matching 'opensisBackup*.sql' pattern from unauthenticated users
  • Large file downloads from backup directory

Network Indicators:

  • Unusual database-sized downloads from web server
  • Requests to predictable backup file names

SIEM Query:

web_access_logs | where url matches "*opensisBackup*" and response_code = 200 and user_agent not in authenticated_user_agents

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2023-38880
CVSS v3 Score: 9.8 (CRITICAL)
CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Published: November 20, 2023
Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

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