CVE-2011-4959 in SilverStripe
Summary
by MITRE
SQL injection vulnerability in the addslashes method in SilverStripe 2.3.x before 2.3.12 and 2.4.x before 2.4.6, when connected to a MySQL database using far east character encodings, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/13/2021
The CVE-2011-4959 vulnerability represents a critical SQL injection flaw in SilverStripe content management systems that specifically impacts versions prior to 2.3.12 and 2.4.6. This vulnerability arises from improper handling of SQL escaping mechanisms when the application connects to MySQL databases using far eastern character encodings such as UTF-8 or other multi-byte character sets. The flaw is particularly dangerous because it leverages the addslashes method, which is designed to escape special characters in SQL queries, but fails to properly handle the complexities of multi-byte character encodings that are common in East Asian languages.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from the interaction between SilverStripe's input sanitization routines and MySQL's character set handling when dealing with multi-byte encodings. When applications process user input through the addslashes method while connected to MySQL with far eastern character encodings, the escaping mechanism becomes ineffective due to how multi-byte characters are interpreted and processed. This creates a scenario where maliciously crafted input can bypass normal SQL injection protections, allowing attackers to inject arbitrary SQL commands into the database layer. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-89 as SQL injection, and specifically aligns with ATT&CK technique T1190 for SQL injection, where adversaries exploit improper input validation to execute unauthorized database commands.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it enables remote code execution and complete database compromise. Attackers can leverage this flaw to extract sensitive data, modify database contents, inject malicious code, or even escalate privileges within the application environment. The vulnerability affects organizations using SilverStripe CMS with multi-language support or applications that require far eastern character set handling, which includes many international websites and enterprise applications. The exploitability is particularly high because the vulnerability occurs during normal application operation when user input is processed, making it difficult to detect and prevent without proper patching.
Organizations should immediately upgrade to SilverStripe versions 2.3.12 or 2.4.6 to remediate this vulnerability, as these releases contain the necessary fixes for the addslashes method implementation. Additionally, implementing proper input validation and output encoding at multiple layers of the application can provide defense-in-depth measures. Security monitoring should focus on detecting unusual database queries and patterns that might indicate SQL injection attempts. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of thorough testing of security mechanisms with various character encodings, particularly when applications support internationalization features. Organizations should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify any other applications that might be affected by similar encoding-related security flaws, as this represents a broader class of issues that can occur when character set handling is not properly implemented in database interactions.