CVE-2024-55638
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes a gadget chain in Drupal Core that enables object injection when untrusted data is deserialized. While the chain itself isn't directly exploitable, it can be leveraged for remote code execution if another vulnerability allows deserialization of attacker-controlled data. Affected are Drupal sites running vulnerable versions from 7.0 through 10.3.8.
💻 Affected Systems
- Drupal Core
📦 What is this software?
Drupal by Drupal
Drupal by Drupal
Drupal by Drupal
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote code execution leading to complete system compromise, data theft, and lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Remote code execution resulting in website defacement, data exfiltration, or installation of backdoors.
If Mitigated
No impact if proper input validation prevents deserialization of untrusted data.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires chaining with another deserialization vulnerability.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 7.102, 10.2.11, 10.3.9
Vendor Advisory: https://www.drupal.org/sa-core-2024-008
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Backup your Drupal site and database. 2. Update Drupal core to the patched version via Composer (composer update drupal/core-recommended --with-dependencies) or manual download. 3. Clear all caches (drush cr or via admin interface).
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Input validation hardening
allImplement strict input validation to prevent deserialization of untrusted data in all user inputs.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block deserialization attempts.
- Restrict network access to Drupal admin interfaces and apply principle of least privilege.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Drupal version via admin/reports/status or drush status. Compare against affected versions.Check Version:
drush status | grep 'Drupal version' or check admin/reports/status page.Verify Fix Applied:
Confirm Drupal version is 7.102, 10.2.11, 10.3.9 or higher via admin/reports/status.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual PHP object injection attempts in web server logs
- Errors related to unserialize() function
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests with serialized PHP objects in parameters
SIEM Query:
web* AND (unserialize OR php_object_injection)