CVE-2013-5316 in RiteCMS
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in RiteCMS 1.0.0 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of administrators for requests that change the administrator password via an edit user action to cms/index.php.
If you want to get the best quality for vulnerability data then you always have to consider VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/05/2025
The CVE-2013-5316 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw in RiteCMS version 1.0.0 that fundamentally undermines the application's authentication security model. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-352 category, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in software applications. The flaw exists within the cms/index.php endpoint where administrative actions are processed, making it a prime target for malicious actors seeking to compromise system integrity. The vulnerability's severity is amplified by its ability to target high-privilege administrator accounts, which could result in complete system compromise.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of proper anti-CSRF token validation within the edit user action functionality. When administrators perform administrative tasks through the cms/index.php interface, the application fails to verify the authenticity of the request source or validate that the request originated from a legitimate administrative session. This omission creates a scenario where a remote attacker can craft malicious web pages or exploit existing social engineering techniques to trick authenticated administrators into executing unauthorized password change requests. The vulnerability specifically targets the password modification functionality, making it particularly dangerous as it directly compromises the primary authentication mechanism.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it enables attackers to gain persistent access to administrative functions and potentially compromise the entire content management system. An attacker exploiting this vulnerability could change administrator passwords without authorization, effectively locking out legitimate users while maintaining access to sensitive system controls. This type of attack aligns with the ATT&CK technique T1566, which covers social engineering tactics, particularly those involving credential access through manipulation of authenticated sessions. The vulnerability also maps to T1078, which addresses legitimate credentials usage, as compromised administrator credentials would allow attackers to maintain long-term access to the system.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2013-5316 must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements. The most effective immediate solution involves implementing robust anti-CSRF token mechanisms that are generated per session and validated on every administrative request. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security controls such as request origin validation, session timeout mechanisms, and multi-factor authentication for administrative accounts. The fix should include proper input validation and output encoding practices to prevent the exploitation of similar vulnerabilities in other parts of the application. Security monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual administrative activity patterns, particularly around password change requests. Additionally, implementing web application firewalls with CSRF detection capabilities and conducting regular security assessments would help prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in the future. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing comprehensive security controls in web applications, particularly those handling administrative functions, and underscores the necessity of following security best practices such as those outlined in the OWASP Top Ten and NIST cybersecurity frameworks.