CVE-2018-18799 in School Attendance Monitoring System
Summary
by MITRE
School Attendance Monitoring System 1.0 has CSRF via event/controller.php?action=photos.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/03/2025
The School Attendance Monitoring System version 1.0 contains a cross-site request forgery vulnerability that allows remote attackers to perform unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users. This vulnerability exists in the event/controller.php script where the action=photos parameter is processed without proper authentication verification or anti-CSRF token implementation. The flaw enables attackers to craft malicious web pages or emails that, when visited by an authenticated user, automatically submit requests to the vulnerable system without the user's knowledge or consent.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of proper session validation and anti-CSRF mechanisms within the application's controller logic. When a user accesses the event/controller.php endpoint with the photos action parameter, the system processes the request without verifying the authenticity of the request origin or confirming that the request was intentionally made by the legitimate user. This weakness allows attackers to exploit the trust relationship between the web application and the user's browser, enabling them to execute arbitrary actions within the context of the authenticated session.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant as it provides attackers with the ability to manipulate the attendance monitoring system without requiring authentication credentials. An attacker could potentially upload malicious files, modify attendance records, or disrupt the normal operation of the system. The vulnerability affects the integrity and availability of the school attendance data, potentially leading to unauthorized access to student information, false attendance reporting, or system disruption that could impact educational administration processes.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in web applications. The flaw demonstrates poor input validation and insufficient session management practices that violate fundamental web security principles. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to technique T1531, which involves using valid accounts to perform unauthorized actions, and T1078, which covers legitimate credentials. The vulnerability could be exploited as part of a broader attack chain where an initial compromise leads to privilege escalation or data manipulation within the school's administrative systems.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing robust anti-CSRF token mechanisms throughout the application's controller logic, particularly in the event/controller.php file. All state-changing operations should require the inclusion and verification of anti-CSRF tokens that are unique per session and tied to the user's current authentication state. Additionally, the application should implement proper referer header validation, implement the SameSite cookie attributes, and ensure that all requests to the photos action endpoint are authenticated through proper session validation. Regular security testing and code reviews should be conducted to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities across the entire application codebase.