CVE-2024-48291 in dingfanzu
Summary
by MITRE • 10/28/2024
dingfanzu CMS 1.0 was discovered to contain a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) via /admin/doAdminAction.php?act=editAdmin&id=17
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/28/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-48291 affects dingfanzu CMS version 1.0 and represents a critical Cross-Site Request Forgery flaw that could enable unauthorized administrative actions. This issue manifests through the administrative interface at the specific endpoint /admin/doAdminAction.php?act=editAdmin&id=17 where the application fails to implement proper CSRF protection mechanisms. The vulnerability allows attackers to manipulate administrative functions without proper authorization, potentially leading to complete system compromise. The flaw specifically targets the editAdmin action within the administrative module, suggesting that the application does not validate the origin of requests or implement anti-CSRF tokens for critical administrative operations.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the absence of CSRF protection measures within the administrative PHP script. When an authenticated administrator performs actions through the web interface, the application should validate that the request originates from the legitimate administrative interface rather than from malicious third-party sites. This validation typically involves implementing anti-CSRF tokens that are generated per session and validated upon form submission or action execution. The lack of such protection means that an attacker could craft malicious requests that, when triggered by an administrator's browser, would execute administrative functions without the administrator's knowledge or consent. This represents a fundamental failure in the application's security architecture and violates core web application security principles.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it provides attackers with the ability to modify administrative user accounts, potentially gaining persistent access to the system. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to change administrator passwords, add new administrative users, or modify system configurations that could lead to complete system compromise. The specific target of editing administrative users makes this particularly dangerous as it directly impacts the authentication and authorization mechanisms of the content management system. Additionally, the vulnerability affects the integrity of the administrative interface, potentially allowing attackers to perform unauthorized modifications to the CMS configuration or user management settings. This flaw could also serve as a stepping stone for further attacks, enabling lateral movement within the network or escalation to other system components.
The mitigation strategy for this vulnerability requires immediate implementation of proper CSRF protection measures within the dingfanzu CMS administrative interface. Organizations should implement anti-CSRF tokens that are generated for each user session and validated upon form submission or action execution. The tokens should be unique per request and properly validated to ensure that administrative actions originate from legitimate sources. Additionally, implementing proper origin validation and implementing the SameSite cookie attributes can provide additional layers of protection. The CMS developers should also consider implementing request validation mechanisms that verify the authenticity of administrative actions and ensure that all administrative operations require proper authentication and authorization. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery issues, and represents a critical threat in the ATT&CK framework under the privilege escalation and persistence tactics. Organizations should also implement comprehensive monitoring to detect suspicious administrative activities that could indicate exploitation attempts.
The broader implications of this vulnerability highlight the importance of implementing robust security controls in content management systems. CMS platforms frequently become targets for attackers due to their widespread use and the sensitive nature of the data they manage. This vulnerability demonstrates how seemingly simple administrative functions can represent significant security risks when proper protection mechanisms are not implemented. The lack of CSRF protection in administrative interfaces is a common oversight that has been documented in numerous security assessments and represents a fundamental security control failure. Organizations should conduct regular security assessments of their CMS platforms to identify similar vulnerabilities and ensure that all administrative functions implement proper authentication and authorization controls. The vulnerability also emphasizes the need for proper security training for developers and system administrators to understand the importance of implementing comprehensive security controls in web applications.