CVE-2012-1416 in SocialCMS
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerabilities in SocialCMS 1.0.2 allow remote attackers to hijack the authentication of administrators for requests that (1) add administrator accounts via a member_new action to my_admin/admin1_members.php or (2) modify the default site title via a save action to my_admin/admin1_configuration.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/21/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-1416 represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw in SocialCMS version 1.0.2 that fundamentally compromises the integrity of administrative functions within the content management system. This vulnerability operates under the Common Weakness Enumeration classification of CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in web applications. The flaw exists due to the absence of proper anti-CSRF mechanisms in the administrative interfaces, allowing malicious actors to exploit the trust relationship between authenticated administrators and the application's backend services.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability manifests through two distinct attack vectors that target different administrative functions within the SocialCMS platform. The first vector enables attackers to add new administrator accounts through the member_new action in the my_admin/admin1_members.php endpoint, while the second vector permits modification of the default site title via the save action in my_admin/admin1_configuration.php. Both attack paths exploit the lack of CSRF protection tokens or similar validation mechanisms that should verify the authenticity of requests originating from legitimate administrative sessions. This absence of validation allows attackers to craft malicious requests that appear to originate from authenticated administrators, bypassing the normal authentication checks that should protect administrative functions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation as it fundamentally undermines the security model of the entire SocialCMS platform. An attacker who successfully exploits either vector can gain unauthorized administrative access to the system, potentially leading to complete system compromise. The ability to add new administrator accounts creates a persistent backdoor within the application, while the configuration modification capability allows for arbitrary changes to site settings, including the potential to redirect users to malicious domains or disable security features. This vulnerability directly violates the principle of least privilege and can result in data breaches, content manipulation, and unauthorized access to sensitive system resources.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should implement comprehensive CSRF protection mechanisms across all administrative functions within the SocialCMS platform. The recommended approach involves implementing anti-CSRF tokens that are generated per session and validated on each administrative request, ensuring that requests originate from legitimate administrative interfaces. Additionally, the implementation of proper request origin validation and session management controls would prevent unauthorized administrative actions from being executed. Organizations should also consider implementing the principle of defense in depth by applying additional security controls such as rate limiting on administrative functions, monitoring for suspicious administrative activities, and ensuring that all administrative interfaces require multi-factor authentication. The remediation efforts should align with industry standards and best practices outlined in the OWASP Top Ten Project and NIST cybersecurity guidelines, particularly focusing on the protection of administrative interfaces and the implementation of robust session management protocols.