CVE-2023-26526 in Bookly Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 05/17/2024
Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in Nota-Info Bookly allows Path Traversal, Manipulating Web Input to File System Calls.This issue affects Bookly: from n/a through 21.7.1.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/17/2024
The CVE-2023-26526 vulnerability represents a critical path traversal flaw within the Nota-Info Bookly application, specifically impacting versions ranging from an unspecified beginning through 21.7.1. This vulnerability falls under the common weakness enumeration CWE-22, which categorizes improper limitation of pathname to restricted directories as a fundamental security weakness that enables attackers to access files and directories outside the intended scope. The flaw manifests when the application fails to properly validate and sanitize user input before using it in file system operations, creating an opportunity for malicious actors to manipulate web input and gain unauthorized access to sensitive system resources.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when user-supplied data containing directory traversal sequences such as ../ or ..\ is accepted without proper validation and subsequently passed to file system calls. This allows attackers to navigate outside the application's intended directory structure and potentially access restricted files, including configuration files, database credentials, application source code, or other sensitive data. The vulnerability's impact is particularly severe because it can be leveraged to execute arbitrary file operations, potentially leading to complete system compromise or data exfiltration. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious requests that include traversal sequences in parameters used for file operations, effectively bypassing normal access controls and directory restrictions.
Operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data access, as it can enable attackers to perform a wide range of malicious activities including but not limited to reading sensitive files, writing malicious code to system directories, or even executing arbitrary commands on the affected system. The vulnerability's presence in the Bookly application means that any user with access to the web interface can potentially exploit this flaw, making it particularly dangerous in multi-user environments. From an attack perspective, this vulnerability aligns with techniques documented in the ATT&CK framework under the T1059.007 sub-technique for "Command and Scripting Interpreter: PowerShell" and T1566.001 for "Phishing: Spearphishing Attachment" as attackers can leverage the path traversal to upload malicious files or establish persistent access. The exploitation can lead to complete compromise of the affected system, especially if the application runs with elevated privileges or has access to sensitive system resources.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2023-26526 should prioritize immediate patching of the affected Bookly versions, as the vulnerability exists in multiple releases and represents a persistent security risk. Organizations should implement proper input validation and sanitization measures that enforce strict path validation before any file system operations are performed. The solution involves implementing a whitelist approach where only explicitly allowed file paths and operations are permitted, combined with proper encoding and escaping of user input to prevent traversal sequences from being interpreted. Additionally, the principle of least privilege should be enforced by ensuring that the application runs with minimal required permissions and that file system access is restricted to only necessary directories. Security monitoring should be enhanced to detect anomalous file system access patterns and potential exploitation attempts, while regular security audits should verify that no hardcoded paths or insecure file handling operations remain in the codebase. The remediation process should also include comprehensive testing to ensure that the implemented fixes do not introduce new vulnerabilities or break existing functionality while maintaining the application's intended behavior.