CVE-2018-16337 in CScms
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in Cscms V4.1.8. There is a CSRF vulnerability that can modify a website's basic configuration via upload/admin.php/setting/save.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/19/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-16337 represents a significant security flaw in the Cscms content management system version 4.1.8, specifically targeting the administrative configuration modification functionality. This issue manifests as a cross-site request forgery vulnerability that allows unauthorized attackers to manipulate critical website settings without proper authentication. The vulnerability exists within the upload/admin.php/setting/save endpoint, which serves as the administrative interface for managing core website configuration parameters. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious web pages or email attachments that, when visited by an authenticated administrator, automatically submit requests to modify the website's basic configuration settings.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of proper anti-CSRF tokens or validation mechanisms within the administrative form processing logic. When an administrator accesses the vulnerable endpoint, the system fails to verify that the request originates from a legitimate administrative session rather than from a malicious third-party website. This fundamental flaw in request validation creates an attack surface where malicious actors can manipulate administrative functions through social engineering or by luring administrators into visiting compromised web pages. The vulnerability specifically targets the configuration saving functionality, which can potentially allow attackers to modify critical system parameters, alter user permissions, change database connection settings, or modify other core website configurations that directly impact system security and functionality.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple configuration modification, as it provides attackers with the capability to compromise the entire website infrastructure. An attacker who successfully exploits this CSRF vulnerability can potentially gain persistent access to the administrative interface, escalate privileges, or manipulate core website functionality to redirect traffic, steal user data, or establish backdoors. The vulnerability's severity is amplified by the fact that it requires minimal user interaction beyond visiting a malicious page, making it particularly dangerous in environments where administrators frequently browse untrusted websites or receive email attachments. This type of vulnerability directly aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery issues, and can be categorized under ATT&CK technique T1078.004 for Valid Accounts and T1566.001 for Phishing, as exploitation typically involves social engineering to convince administrators to visit malicious sites.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing robust anti-CSRF protection mechanisms throughout the administrative interface. The most effective approach involves incorporating unique, unpredictable tokens for each administrative session that must be validated before any configuration changes are processed. Additionally, implementing proper session management, enforcing strict referer header validation, and adding time-based restrictions for administrative actions can significantly reduce the attack surface. Organizations should also consider implementing multi-factor authentication for administrative accounts, regularly updating the CMS to patched versions, and conducting security awareness training for administrators to recognize potential social engineering attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of validating all administrative requests through multiple authentication factors rather than relying solely on session cookies or browser-based authentication mechanisms that can be easily spoofed through CSRF attacks.