CVE-2005-4087 in Sugar Suite
Summary
by MITRE
PHP remote file include vulnerability in acceptDecline.php in Sugar Suite Open Source Customer Relationship Management (SugarCRM) 4.0 beta and earlier allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary PHP code via a URL in the beanFiles array parameter.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/09/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-4087 represents a critical remote code execution flaw within SugarCRM Open Source Customer Relationship Management software version 4.0 beta and earlier. This issue resides in the acceptDecline.php script which processes user input through the beanFiles array parameter without proper validation or sanitization. The flaw enables malicious actors to inject and execute arbitrary PHP code on the target system, fundamentally compromising the application's security posture and potentially leading to full system compromise.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper input handling and lack of input validation within the PHP application code. When the acceptDecline.php script processes the beanFiles array parameter, it fails to properly sanitize user-supplied URLs, allowing attackers to inject malicious file paths that are subsequently included and executed by the PHP interpreter. This constitutes a classic remote file inclusion vulnerability, which is categorized under CWE-88 as "Improper Neutralization of Argument Delimiters in a Command" and also aligns with CWE-94 as "Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')." The vulnerability operates at the application layer and can be exploited through HTTP requests that manipulate the beanFiles parameter to reference external malicious files.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, affecting organizations using affected SugarCRM versions in production environments. Attackers can leverage this flaw to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the web server process, potentially leading to complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and persistence mechanisms. The vulnerability allows for remote code execution without requiring authentication, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by anyone who can submit requests to the affected application. Organizations may experience unauthorized access to customer data, modification of business processes, and potential use as a foothold for further network infiltration. This vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for "Command and Scripting Interpreter: PowerShell" and T1078.004 for "Valid Accounts: Cloud Accounts" when attackers establish persistence through the executed malicious code.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate action including upgrading to patched versions of SugarCRM, as version 4.0 beta contained this flaw. Organizations should implement input validation and sanitization measures to prevent malicious URLs from being processed, particularly within parameters that control file inclusion operations. Web application firewalls can provide additional protection by filtering suspicious requests containing malicious URL patterns. The implementation of proper parameter validation and the use of allowlists for acceptable file paths rather than relying on user input for file inclusion operations represents the most effective long-term solution. Security monitoring should include detection of unusual file inclusion patterns and unauthorized code execution attempts. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar flaws in other applications and ensure proper patch management processes are maintained to prevent exploitation of known vulnerabilities in the software supply chain.