CVE-2012-4877 in FlatnuX
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in controlcenter.php in FlatnuX CMS 2011 08.09.2 and earlier allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of administrators for requests that add user accounts.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/11/2025
The CVE-2012-4877 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw in FlatnuX CMS versions prior to 2011 08.09.2, specifically within the controlcenter.php component. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-352 category, which defines cross-site request forgery as a security weakness that occurs when a web application fails to verify that requests originate from legitimate users. The flaw enables remote attackers to exploit the authentication mechanisms of administrative accounts by tricking them into executing unauthorized actions through maliciously crafted requests.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability exploits the absence of proper anti-CSRF token validation within the controlcenter.php file. When administrators access the CMS control panel, the application does not adequately verify the authenticity of requests attempting to add new user accounts. Attackers can construct malicious web pages or send specially crafted links that, when visited by an authenticated administrator, automatically submit requests to the vulnerable CMS endpoint. These requests bypass normal authentication checks because the malicious payload includes the administrator's existing session cookies, making the server believe the action originates from a legitimate user.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe, as it provides attackers with the capability to escalate privileges and gain unauthorized administrative access to the CMS system. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can add new user accounts with administrative privileges, potentially establishing persistent access to the compromised system. This creates a significant risk for organizations using outdated FlatnuX CMS versions, as the vulnerability can be exploited without requiring any special privileges or advanced technical knowledge. The attack surface is particularly concerning given that the flaw affects the core administrative functionality of the content management system.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2012-4877 should prioritize immediate remediation through software updates to the latest available version of FlatnuX CMS, which includes proper CSRF token implementation and validation. Organizations should also implement additional defensive measures such as deploying web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious request patterns, enforcing strict session management policies, and conducting regular security assessments of web applications. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing proper input validation and request origin verification, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1548.005 for privilege escalation through session manipulation. Security teams should also consider implementing multi-factor authentication and monitoring for unusual administrative activities that could indicate successful exploitation of CSRF vulnerabilities.