CVE-2022-28016 in Attendance and Payroll System
Summary
by MITRE • 04/22/2022
Attendance and Payroll System v1.0 was discovered to contain a SQL injection vulnerability via the component \admin\deduction_edit.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/28/2022
The CVE-2022-28016 vulnerability represents a critical SQL injection flaw within the Attendance and Payroll System version 1.0, specifically targeting the administrative component located at admin/deduction_edit.php. This vulnerability arises from insufficient input validation and improper parameter handling within the web application's backend database interactions. The flaw allows malicious actors to inject arbitrary SQL commands through user-controllable parameters, potentially compromising the entire database infrastructure. The vulnerability is particularly concerning as it exists within the administrative interface, which typically contains sensitive employee data including payroll information, attendance records, and personal identification details. The exploitation of this vulnerability could result in unauthorized data access, data modification, or complete database compromise.
The technical implementation of this SQL injection vulnerability stems from the application's failure to properly sanitize or escape user inputs before incorporating them into database queries. When administrators interact with the deduction_edit.php component, the system likely accepts parameters directly from HTTP requests without adequate validation or parameterization. This creates an attack surface where malicious payloads can be crafted to manipulate the underlying SQL queries executed by the database management system. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-89, which specifically addresses SQL injection flaws, and represents a classic example of insecure database query construction. Attackers can leverage this weakness to bypass authentication mechanisms, extract confidential information, or even execute destructive operations on the database.
The operational impact of CVE-2022-28016 extends beyond simple data theft, as it poses significant risks to organizational integrity and compliance. Given that the affected system manages payroll and attendance data, successful exploitation could lead to financial fraud, unauthorized access to employee records, and potential regulatory violations under data protection laws such as gdpr or ccpa. The administrative nature of the vulnerable component means that attackers could potentially escalate privileges and gain full control over the system. This vulnerability also aligns with several ATT&CK techniques including T1071.004 for application layer protocol usage and T1566 for credential access through social engineering or direct exploitation. Organizations relying on this system face potential reputational damage, financial losses, and legal consequences from data breaches resulting from this vulnerability.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2022-28016 should prioritize immediate implementation of parameterized queries and input validation mechanisms throughout the application codebase. Organizations must ensure that all database interactions utilize prepared statements or parameterized queries to prevent user input from being interpreted as SQL commands. The admin/deduction_edit.php component requires comprehensive input sanitization and validation, implementing whitelisting approaches for acceptable input values. Additionally, regular security assessments and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities across the entire application. Network-level protections including web application firewalls and database access controls should be implemented to provide defense-in-depth. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of following secure coding practices and adhering to OWASP Top Ten security guidelines, particularly those addressing injection flaws and access control issues. Regular patch management and vulnerability scanning should be established to prevent similar issues from arising in future versions of the system.