CVE-2022-3972 in HMS-PHP
Summary
by MITRE • 11/13/2022
A vulnerability was found in Pingkon HMS-PHP. It has been rated as critical. This issue affects some unknown processing of the file admin/adminlogin.php. The manipulation of the argument uname/pass leads to sql injection. The attack may be initiated remotely. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. The associated identifier of this vulnerability is VDB-213551.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/17/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-3972 represents a critical sql injection flaw within the Pingkon HMS-PHP application, specifically targeting the admin/adminlogin.php file. This vulnerability falls under the common weakness enumeration CWE-89 which categorizes sql injection attacks as a persistent threat to web application security. The flaw manifests when the application processes user input through the uname and pass parameters without proper sanitization or validation, creating an exploitable pathway for malicious actors to manipulate database queries.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary sql commands by manipulating the username and password input fields during the login process. When user credentials are submitted through the adminlogin.php endpoint, the application fails to properly escape or parameterize the input values, enabling attackers to inject malicious sql syntax that can bypass authentication mechanisms, extract sensitive data, or even modify database contents. This particular weakness demonstrates poor input validation practices that violate fundamental secure coding principles and industry standards such as those outlined in the owasp top ten project.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple authentication bypass, as successful exploitation could lead to complete database compromise and unauthorized access to sensitive information. Attackers could potentially extract user credentials, personal data, or system configurations from the affected database. The remote exploitability of this vulnerability means that attackers do not require physical access to the system or local network privileges to initiate the attack, making it particularly dangerous for web-facing applications. The public disclosure of the exploit, as indicated by the VDB-213551 identifier, increases the likelihood of widespread exploitation and further compromises the security posture of affected systems.
Organizations utilizing Pingkon HMS-PHP software must implement immediate mitigation strategies to address this vulnerability. The primary remediation approach involves implementing proper input validation and parameterized queries to prevent sql injection attacks. This includes upgrading to the latest version of the software where the vulnerability has been patched, implementing web application firewalls to detect and block malicious sql injection attempts, and conducting thorough code reviews to identify similar vulnerabilities in other application components. Additionally, implementing principle of least privilege access controls and regular security assessments can help reduce the overall attack surface and improve the system's resilience against similar threats categorized under the attack technique T1190 in the mitre att&ck framework for exploitation of remote services.