CVE-2025-51488
📋 TL;DR
A stored XSS vulnerability in MoonShine versions before 3.12.4 allows attackers to inject malicious JavaScript into the Name parameter when creating Admin accounts. This affects all MoonShine deployments using vulnerable versions, potentially compromising admin sessions and data.
💻 Affected Systems
- MoonShine
📦 What is this software?
Moonshine by Moonshine
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Attackers could steal admin session cookies, perform actions as administrators, exfiltrate sensitive data, or deploy malware to admin browsers.
Likely Case
Session hijacking leading to unauthorized admin access, data theft, or defacement of admin interfaces.
If Mitigated
Limited to admin interface disruption if input validation and output encoding are properly implemented elsewhere.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires creating an admin account with malicious payload; proof-of-concept code is available in the referenced GitHub repository.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 3.12.4
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/moonshine-software/moonshine
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update MoonShine to version 3.12.4 or later via composer: composer update moonshine/moonshine. 2. Clear application cache if applicable. 3. Verify the update completed successfully.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Input Validation and Sanitization
allImplement server-side validation to reject HTML/JavaScript in the Name parameter during admin creation.
Output Encoding
allEnsure all user-controlled data displayed in admin interfaces is properly HTML-encoded.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Disable admin creation functionality or restrict it to trusted users only.
- Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with XSS protection rules.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check MoonShine version in composer.json or via composer show moonshine/moonshine.Check Version:
composer show moonshine/moonshine | grep versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 3.12.4 or higher and test admin creation with XSS payloads to ensure they are sanitized.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual admin creation events with long or script-like names
- Failed XSS attempts in web server logs
Network Indicators:
- HTTP POST requests to admin creation endpoints containing JavaScript payloads
SIEM Query:
source="web_logs" AND (uri_path="/admin/create" OR uri_path LIKE "%/admin%") AND (request_body CONTAINS "<script>" OR request_body CONTAINS "javascript:")