CVE-2023-37598 in PBX
Summary
by MITRE • 07/14/2023
A Cross Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in issabel-pbx v.4.0.0-6 allows a remote attacker to cause a denial of service via the delete new virtual fax function.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/18/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-37598 represents a critical cross site request forgery flaw within the issabel-pbx version 4.0.0-6 telephony system. This issue resides in the virtual fax management functionality, specifically within the delete new virtual fax operation. The flaw enables remote attackers to exploit the system's lack of proper authentication verification mechanisms, allowing them to execute unauthorized actions against the affected telephony infrastructure. The vulnerability classification aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in web applications. This particular implementation flaw demonstrates a failure in the application's security controls to validate the authenticity of requests originating from legitimate users versus malicious actors.
The technical exploitation of this CSRF vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of the delete new virtual fax function, which lacks adequate anti-CSRF token validation or session confirmation mechanisms. Attackers can craft malicious requests that appear to originate from authenticated users within the system, thereby bypassing the normal authentication and authorization checks. The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation as it specifically targets the denial of service capability, allowing unauthorized individuals to disrupt legitimate fax operations and potentially cause system instability. This particular attack vector operates through the web interface of the issabel-pbx system, leveraging the inherent trust model between the user interface and backend services without proper verification of request legitimacy.
The operational impact of CVE-2023-37598 presents significant risks to organizations utilizing the issabel-pbx telephony platform, particularly those relying on virtual fax services for business operations. A successful exploitation could result in complete disruption of fax services, preventing legitimate users from performing critical communication functions. The vulnerability's remote nature eliminates the need for physical access or network proximity, making it particularly dangerous for organizations with remote workers or distributed teams. Organizations may experience service interruptions that affect customer communications, business continuity, and overall operational efficiency. The attack could potentially be amplified through automated tools that generate multiple malicious requests, leading to cascading system failures and increased downtime.
Mitigation strategies for this CSRF vulnerability should focus on implementing robust anti-CSRF protection mechanisms within the affected application. The primary recommendation involves deploying unique, unpredictable tokens for each user session that must be validated before processing any critical operations including the delete virtual fax function. Organizations should also implement proper request origin validation and ensure that all state-changing operations require explicit user confirmation through secondary authentication mechanisms. The solution should align with established security frameworks such as the OWASP CSRF Prevention Cheat Sheet and ATT&CK technique T1566.002 for credential harvesting through social engineering. Additionally, network segmentation and access controls should be implemented to limit exposure of the affected system components, while regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in related systems.