CVE-2023-7173 in Hospital Management System
Summary
by MITRE • 12/30/2023
A vulnerability, which was classified as problematic, was found in PHPGurukul Hospital Management System 1.0. This affects an unknown part of the file registration.php. The manipulation of the argument First Name leads to cross site scripting. It is possible to initiate the attack remotely. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. The identifier VDB-249357 was assigned to this vulnerability.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/21/2024
This cross site scripting vulnerability in PHPGurukul Hospital Management System version 1.0 represents a critical security flaw that exposes the application to remote code execution risks through client-side attack vectors. The vulnerability specifically resides within the registration.php file where user input validation is insufficiently implemented for the First Name parameter, creating an opportunity for malicious actors to inject arbitrary script code into the web application's response. The weakness allows attackers to manipulate the First Name field in such a way that malicious JavaScript payloads are executed within the context of other users' browsers who view the affected content. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws in web applications, where improper sanitization of user-supplied data creates opportunities for attackers to execute malicious scripts in victim browsers. The remote exploitation capability means that an attacker can initiate this attack without requiring physical access to the system or direct network connection to the application server itself.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft or session hijacking, as it provides attackers with the ability to perform actions on behalf of authenticated users within the context of the vulnerable application. When users visit pages containing maliciously injected scripts, their browsers execute the embedded code which can lead to various malicious outcomes including credential theft, data exfiltration, defacement of the application interface, or redirection to phishing sites. The disclosed exploit status indicates that this vulnerability is actively being used by threat actors in the wild, making it particularly dangerous for organizations running this specific version of the hospital management system. This particular implementation allows attackers to inject script code through the First Name parameter which gets rendered back to other users without proper output encoding or sanitization.
Security professionals should recognize this vulnerability as part of the broader ATT&CK framework's T1566 technique for Initial Access through spearphishing attachments or links, where the XSS payload serves as the initial exploitation vector. The lack of proper input validation and output encoding in the registration process creates a persistent threat that can affect any user who interacts with the system's web interface. Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including comprehensive input sanitization of all user-supplied data, implementation of proper Content Security Policy headers, and deployment of Web Application Firewall rules specifically designed to detect and block XSS attack patterns. The vulnerability's classification as a remote exploit means that organizations cannot rely solely on network segmentation or internal firewalls for protection, as the attack can originate from any internet-connected device with access to the vulnerable web application. Additionally, regular security assessments and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar input validation weaknesses in other parts of the application that may not have been disclosed publicly.
The specific nature of this vulnerability makes it particularly concerning for healthcare environments where patient data confidentiality is paramount, as XSS attacks can potentially expose sensitive medical information through session hijacking or credential theft mechanisms. The fact that the vulnerability affects a registration page indicates that it could be exploited during user onboarding processes, making it an attractive target for attackers seeking to establish persistent access to the system. Organizations should also consider implementing automated security testing tools that can detect such vulnerabilities during development and deployment cycles, as well as ensuring that all third-party components and open source libraries used in the application are regularly updated to prevent similar issues from emerging in other parts of the software stack.