CVE-2005-1780 in Active News Manager
Summary
by MITRE
SQL injection vulnerability in admin/login.asp in Active News Manager allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the password.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/25/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-1780 represents a critical SQL injection flaw within the Active News Manager application's administrative login component. This security weakness resides in the admin/login.asp file which fails to properly validate or sanitize user input before incorporating it into SQL database queries. The vulnerability specifically affects the password parameter handling, creating an avenue for malicious actors to inject arbitrary SQL commands directly into the application's database interface.
This SQL injection vulnerability operates through the exploitation of improper input validation mechanisms within the authentication process. When users attempt to log in through the administrative interface, the application accepts the password value without adequate sanitization or parameterization. Attackers can manipulate the password field to inject malicious SQL syntax that gets executed by the underlying database engine, potentially allowing full administrative access to the application's backend systems.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform extensive database operations including data extraction, modification, or deletion. The flaw enables adversaries to bypass authentication mechanisms entirely, potentially gaining complete control over the news management system and its associated data. This could result in data breaches, content manipulation, service disruption, and potential lateral movement within networks where the vulnerable application resides.
Security professionals should recognize this vulnerability as a classic example of CWE-89 SQL Injection, which falls under the broader category of injection flaws defined by the CWE hierarchy. The attack vector aligns with ATT&CK technique T1190 for exploiting vulnerabilities in applications and T1078 for valid accounts, as successful exploitation would allow attackers to assume administrative privileges. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing proper input validation and parameterized queries to prevent malicious code injection attacks.
Mitigation strategies should prioritize immediate implementation of input sanitization measures, including the adoption of parameterized database queries and proper escaping of special characters. Organizations must ensure that all user inputs are validated against expected formats and lengths before processing. The application should be updated to use secure coding practices that prevent SQL injection by separating SQL commands from data values. Additionally, network segmentation and access controls should be implemented to limit exposure of vulnerable components, while regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other application components.