CVE-2022-1078 in College Website Management System
Summary
by MITRE • 03/29/2022
A vulnerability was found in SourceCodester College Website Management System 1.0. It has been classified as critical. Affected is the file /cwms/admin/?page=articles/view_article/. The manipulation of the argument id with the input ' and (select * from(select(sleep(10)))Avx) and 'abc' = 'abc with an unknown input leads to sql injection. It is possible to launch the attack remotely and without authentication.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/16/2026
This critical vulnerability exists within the SourceCodester College Website Management System version 1.0, specifically targeting the administrative interface at the path /cwms/admin/?page=articles/view_article/. The flaw represents a classic sql injection vulnerability that allows attackers to execute arbitrary database commands through manipulation of the id parameter. The attack vector involves injecting malicious sql code containing a sleep function with a 10-second delay, which demonstrates the system's susceptibility to time-based sql injection techniques. This vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be exploited remotely without requiring any authentication credentials, making it accessible to any attacker on the internet. The injection occurs through the id argument where an attacker can append the payload ' and (select * from(select(sleep(10)))Avx) and 'abc' = 'abc, which effectively bypasses input validation mechanisms and allows the database to process the malicious sql statement. This type of vulnerability maps directly to CWE-89, which defines sql injection as the insertion of malicious sql code into input fields for execution by the database. The operational impact extends beyond simple data theft as this vulnerability could enable complete database compromise, allowing attackers to extract sensitive information, modify database contents, or even escalate privileges within the application. According to the mitre ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability falls under the T1190 technique for exploitation of a remote service, specifically targeting the database layer through web application vulnerabilities. The remote exploitation capability without authentication makes this a severe threat to the system's integrity and confidentiality, as it allows unauthorized access to all data stored within the database. The timing-based injection technique used in this attack indicates that the system's response time can be manipulated to infer information about the database structure, potentially enabling more sophisticated attacks such as blind sql injection. Organizations using this system face significant risk of data breaches, system compromise, and potential regulatory violations due to the lack of authentication requirements for exploitation. The vulnerability demonstrates poor input validation and inadequate sanitization of user-supplied data, which are fundamental security practices that should be implemented at all levels of application development.
The technical implementation of this sql injection vulnerability exposes fundamental flaws in the application's data handling mechanisms and demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and parameterized queries. The attacker's ability to inject a sleep function directly into the database query execution process indicates that the system lacks proper sanitization of user input before it is processed by the sql engine. This type of injection attack can be classified as a time-based blind sql injection, where the attacker infers information from the database response time rather than direct data retrieval. The vulnerability exists because the application directly concatenates user input into sql queries without proper escaping or parameterization, which violates basic security principles and creates an attack surface that can be exploited by even novice attackers. The specific path /cwms/admin/?page=articles/view_article/ suggests that this vulnerability is present in the article viewing functionality of the administrative backend, which may contain sensitive information about the college's operations, student data, or institutional records. The fact that this vulnerability can be exploited without authentication means that it represents an inherent weakness in the system's access control mechanisms, potentially allowing unauthorized individuals to gain access to privileged database functions. This vulnerability aligns with the NIST cybersecurity framework's focus on protecting against unauthorized access and maintaining data integrity, as it creates a pathway for attackers to compromise the database layer of the application. The use of a sleep function in the injection payload indicates that the attacker is attempting to perform a timing attack, which is a common technique in blind sql injection scenarios where direct output is not available. Such attacks can be used to extract database schema information, user credentials, and other sensitive data through careful timing analysis of the database responses.
Mitigation strategies for this critical vulnerability must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements to prevent similar issues from occurring in the future. The most effective immediate solution involves implementing proper parameterized queries or prepared statements throughout the application codebase, which will prevent user input from being interpreted as sql commands. Organizations should also implement comprehensive input validation and sanitization routines that reject or escape potentially malicious input before it reaches the database layer. The system should be updated to use modern web application frameworks that provide built-in protection against sql injection attacks, as well as implement proper access controls that require authentication for administrative functions. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls should be deployed to detect and block sql injection attempts, while database-level security measures including restricted database user permissions and audit logging should be implemented to monitor for unauthorized database access attempts. Regular security testing including automated sql injection scanning and manual penetration testing should be conducted to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities throughout the application. The remediation process must also include proper code review procedures that enforce secure coding practices and eliminate hardcoded sql queries that directly incorporate user input. Additionally, implementing proper error handling that does not expose database structure information to end users is crucial to prevent attackers from gaining additional intelligence about the database architecture. Organizations should also consider implementing database activity monitoring and intrusion detection systems that can alert administrators to suspicious database access patterns that may indicate sql injection attempts. The vulnerability's classification as critical according to standard risk assessment methodologies indicates that immediate remediation is essential, as the combination of remote exploitability and lack of authentication requirements creates an extremely high-risk scenario for organizations using this software. The implementation of these mitigations should follow industry standards such as the owasp top ten and iso 27001 security requirements to ensure comprehensive protection against sql injection and related vulnerabilities.