CVE-2014-100025 in Savsoft Quiz
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in index.php/user_data/insert_user in Savsoft Quiz allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of administrators for requests that create an administrator account via a crafted request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/11/2022
This cross-site request forgery vulnerability exists within the Savsoft Quiz application's user management functionality, specifically in the index.php/user_data/insert_user endpoint. The flaw represents a critical security weakness that permits unauthorized remote attackers to manipulate the authentication system by crafting malicious requests that create administrator accounts without proper authorization. The vulnerability stems from the absence of proper anti-CSRF token validation mechanisms within the user creation workflow, allowing attackers to exploit the application's trust in legitimate user sessions.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability demonstrates a classic CSRF attack vector where the application fails to validate the authenticity of requests originating from the victim's browser session. When an administrator performs actions through the web interface, the application should verify that the request originates from a legitimate source by checking for a unique, unpredictable token that is tied to the user's session. However, in this case, the insert_user endpoint does not require such validation, making it possible for attackers to construct malicious requests that bypass authentication checks and execute administrative functions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it allows attackers to gain full administrative control over the Savsoft Quiz platform. This elevated access enables malicious actors to modify quiz configurations, manipulate user data, alter test results, and potentially establish persistent backdoors within the application. The vulnerability affects the integrity and confidentiality of the entire system since administrators can create new administrative accounts with full privileges, effectively compromising the application's access control mechanisms. The attack requires minimal technical expertise and can be executed through simple HTTP requests, making it particularly dangerous for organizations relying on this quiz platform.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including the implementation of anti-CSRF tokens for all state-changing operations within the application, particularly those involving user account management. The solution involves generating unique, unpredictable tokens that are validated on each request and ensuring that these tokens are properly embedded in forms and verified server-side before processing user creation requests. Additionally, implementing proper session management practices and ensuring that all administrative functions require explicit authentication confirmation can significantly reduce the attack surface. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1078.004 for valid accounts and T1548.002 for abuse of cloud credentials, as attackers can leverage compromised administrative access to maintain persistent presence within the system. The remediation should also include regular security assessments of web applications to identify similar vulnerabilities in other endpoints that handle user management or administrative functions.