CVE-2011-4460 in Best Practical
Summary
by MITRE
SQL injection vulnerability in Best Practical Solutions RT 2.x and 3.x before 3.8.12 and 4.x before 4.0.6 allows remote authenticated users to execute arbitrary SQL commands by leveraging access to a privileged account.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/03/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-4460 represents a critical sql injection flaw affecting Best Practical Solutions RT versions 2.x through 3.x prior to 3.8.12 and 4.x versions before 4.0.6. This vulnerability operates under the weakness type classified as CWE-89 sql injection, which is a well-established and dangerous category of software vulnerabilities that allows attackers to manipulate database queries through malicious input. The flaw specifically targets the authentication and authorization mechanisms within the RT system, where legitimate privileged accounts are leveraged to execute unauthorized database operations. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it requires only authenticated access rather than requiring exploitation of a separate authentication bypass, making it more readily exploitable within environments where users already have legitimate access to the system.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and sanitization within the RT application's database query construction processes. When authenticated users submit data through various application interfaces, the system fails to properly escape or parameterize user-supplied inputs before incorporating them into sql commands. This creates an environment where maliciously crafted input can alter the intended flow of database queries, potentially allowing attackers to execute arbitrary sql commands with the privileges of the authenticated account. The vulnerability affects multiple versions of the RT platform, indicating a widespread issue that was not adequately addressed in the development cycle leading up to the affected releases.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft or modification, as it provides attackers with the capability to escalate their privileges within the system and potentially gain access to sensitive information across multiple domains. The authenticated nature of the attack means that an attacker could compromise a legitimate user account through various means such as credential theft, social engineering, or other initial access vectors, then leverage this vulnerability to execute commands at the database level. This represents a significant risk to organizations using RT for ticket management, as the system often contains sensitive information about users, system configurations, and potentially business-critical data. The vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 legitimate credentials, where adversaries use valid accounts to gain access to systems, and T1046 network service scanning, as the exploitation may involve reconnaissance to identify vulnerable endpoints.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement the available patches from Best Practical Solutions, which address the input validation issues in the affected versions. Security teams should also conduct comprehensive audits of their RT installations to ensure all systems have been updated and verify that no unauthorized access has occurred. Additional mitigations include implementing network segmentation to limit access to RT systems, enforcing strict access controls and monitoring for unusual database activity, and conducting regular security assessments of web applications. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation and the principle of least privilege in application security design, as proper parameterization of database queries and robust access controls would have prevented or significantly limited the impact of this vulnerability. Organizations should also consider implementing database activity monitoring solutions to detect anomalous sql command execution patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts.