CVE-2001-0383 in PHP-Nuke
Summary
by MITRE
banners.php in PHP-Nuke 4.4 and earlier allows remote attackers to modify banner ad URLs by directly calling the Change operation, which does not require authentication.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/06/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2001-0383 represents a critical security flaw in PHP-Nuke version 4.4 and earlier systems where the banners.php script fails to implement proper authentication checks before allowing banner ad URL modifications. This weakness stems from the application's failure to verify user credentials or authorization status when executing the Change operation within the banner management functionality. The flaw allows any remote attacker to directly manipulate banner advertisements without requiring valid user credentials or administrative privileges, creating an unauthorized modification path that compromises the integrity of the advertising system.
This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-284 Access Control Bypass, where insufficient access controls permit unauthorized modification of system resources. The technical implementation flaw occurs at the application logic level where the Change operation in banners.php does not validate whether the requesting user possesses the necessary permissions to modify banner URLs. The lack of authentication verification creates an attack surface that enables malicious actors to inject arbitrary URLs into banner advertisements, potentially leading to phishing attacks, malware distribution, or other malicious activities that exploit the banner system for unauthorized purposes.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple banner manipulation as it provides attackers with a persistent vector for delivering malicious content to unsuspecting users. Remote attackers can modify banner URLs to redirect users to malicious websites, inject harmful JavaScript code, or serve malware downloads through the banner advertising system. This capability undermines the trust model of the web application and can result in significant reputational damage to the organization running the PHP-Nuke system. The vulnerability also enables attackers to manipulate advertising revenue streams by redirecting banner clicks to their own malicious domains, creating potential financial losses for the legitimate site owner.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including updating to PHP-Nuke versions that address this authentication bypass issue, implementing proper access controls for banner management functions, and conducting thorough security audits of all administrative interfaces. The recommended approach involves enforcing strong authentication mechanisms for all administrative operations, implementing role-based access controls, and ensuring that all user interactions with banner management systems require proper authorization. Additionally, network-level protections such as firewall rules and intrusion detection systems should be configured to monitor for suspicious banner modification activities, while regular security assessments should verify that access controls remain properly enforced across all application components. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing proper authentication and authorization checks for all administrative functions, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1078 Valid Accounts and T1546 Persistence via Application Shimming to prevent unauthorized access to critical system components.