CVE-2007-5109 in FlatNuke
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in index.php in FlatNuke 2.6, and possibly 3, allows remote attackers to change the password and privilege level of arbitrary accounts via the user parameter and modified (1) regpass and (2) level parameters in a none_Login action, as demonstrated by using a Flash object to automatically make the request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/09/2018
The CVE-2007-5109 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw in FlatNuke content management systems version 2.6 and potentially 3.0, exposing systems to unauthorized account manipulation through carefully crafted malicious requests. This vulnerability operates by exploiting the absence of proper authentication verification mechanisms within the application's user management functions, specifically targeting the index.php script's handling of user account modifications.
The technical exploitation of this CSRF vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of specific parameters within the application's none_Login action handler. Attackers can construct malicious requests that modify user accounts by manipulating the user parameter alongside modified regpass and level parameters, effectively allowing unauthorized password changes and privilege level modifications for arbitrary accounts. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be automated through Flash objects or similar web technologies, enabling attackers to execute these malicious requests without user interaction or awareness.
This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in web applications, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078.004 for valid accounts and T1566.001 for malicious file execution. The flaw demonstrates a fundamental failure in implementing proper request validation and authentication checks, as the application fails to verify that requests originate from authenticated users with proper authorization levels. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple account compromise to potentially enable privilege escalation and full system control when combined with other exploitation techniques.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe, as it allows remote attackers to completely compromise user accounts and potentially gain elevated privileges within the FlatNuke system. Attackers can modify user passwords to gain persistent access, elevate user privileges to administrative levels, or create new administrative accounts, effectively taking complete control of the content management system. The use of Flash objects for automatic request execution makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous as it can be deployed silently without user interaction, enabling automated exploitation at scale.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing robust anti-CSRF token mechanisms throughout the application, requiring proper authentication verification for all account modification requests, and ensuring that all user management functions require explicit authentication tokens that tie requests to legitimate user sessions. Organizations should also implement proper input validation and parameter sanitization, establish session management controls, and consider implementing additional security layers such as CAPTCHA mechanisms or rate limiting for sensitive operations. The vulnerability underscores the critical importance of applying the principle of least privilege and ensuring that all user account modification functions require proper authentication and authorization verification before processing any requests.