CVE-2005-4038 in Portal Solutions
Summary
by MITRE
SQL injection vulnerability in comentarii.php in Web4Future Portal Solutions News Portal allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the idp parameter.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/30/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-4038 represents a critical SQL injection flaw within the Web4Future Portal Solutions News Portal software. This security weakness resides in the comentarii.php script which processes user input through the idp parameter, creating an exploitable pathway for malicious actors to manipulate database queries. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and sanitization practices, allowing attackers to inject malicious SQL code that bypasses normal authentication and authorization mechanisms.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an attacker submits specially crafted SQL commands through the idp parameter in the comentarii.php script. These malicious inputs are directly concatenated into SQL queries without proper escaping or parameterization, enabling the execution of arbitrary database operations. The flaw demonstrates characteristics consistent with CWE-89 SQL Injection, where untrusted data flows into SQL command construction without adequate protection mechanisms. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to extract sensitive information from the underlying database, modify or delete records, and potentially gain administrative privileges within the application's database layer.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft, as it provides attackers with persistent access to the portal's database infrastructure. Remote exploitation means that attackers do not require physical access to the system or local network connectivity, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous in web-facing applications. The vulnerability affects the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the news portal's data, potentially leading to complete system compromise if the database contains administrative credentials or sensitive user information. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1071.004 Application Layer Protocol: DNS, where attackers may use database access for lateral movement and privilege escalation.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2005-4038 require immediate implementation of proper input validation and parameterized queries. Organizations should implement input sanitization routines that filter or escape special characters commonly used in SQL injection attacks, including single quotes, semicolons, and comment markers. The recommended approach involves adopting prepared statements or parameterized queries that separate SQL code from user input, preventing the execution of malicious SQL fragments. Additionally, implementing proper access controls and database permissions can limit the damage from successful exploitation attempts, ensuring that database accounts used by the web application have minimal required privileges. Security patches should be applied immediately to address the root cause, and regular security assessments should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other components of the web application stack.