CVE-2018-20937 in cPanel
Summary
by MITRE
cPanel before 68.0.27 does not validate database and dbuser names during renames (SEC-321).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/18/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-20937 affects cPanel versions prior to 68.0.27 and represents a critical security flaw in the database management system handling. This issue stems from insufficient input validation during the renaming process of database and database user objects within the cPanel interface. The vulnerability was categorized as SEC-321 by cPanel's security team, highlighting its potential to compromise database integrity and user access controls.
The technical flaw manifests when administrators or users attempt to rename database or database user objects through the cPanel web interface. The system fails to properly validate the input parameters provided for these rename operations, allowing for potentially malicious or malformed input to be processed without adequate sanitization. This lack of validation creates an environment where attackers could exploit the system by crafting specially formatted database names or user identifiers that may bypass normal security checks. The vulnerability specifically targets the validation mechanisms that should occur during database object renaming operations, which are fundamental administrative functions within the cPanel environment.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data integrity concerns and can potentially enable privilege escalation attacks and unauthorized database access. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could manipulate database user permissions, gain access to restricted database objects, or potentially execute unauthorized database operations. The flaw particularly affects environments where multiple users share database resources, as improper validation during renames could allow one user to interfere with another's database objects. This vulnerability directly impacts the principle of least privilege and can undermine the security boundaries that cPanel establishes between different user accounts and their respective database resources. The issue aligns with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation, and represents a classic case of insufficient validation or sanitization of user-supplied data.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate application of the security patch released by cPanel in version 68.0.27. Organizations should prioritize updating their cPanel installations to ensure that all database rename operations undergo proper validation checks. System administrators should also implement monitoring for unusual database rename activities and establish strict access controls for database administrative functions. The remediation process should include verification that all database objects are properly validated during rename operations and that appropriate error handling is implemented for malformed inputs. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing network segmentation and database access logging to detect potential exploitation attempts. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation in administrative interfaces and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts and privilege escalation through system access. Regular security assessments of administrative interfaces and database management systems should be conducted to identify similar validation gaps that could be exploited by threat actors.