CVE-2025-1588 in Online Nurse Hiring System
Summary
by MITRE • 02/23/2025
A vulnerability has been found in PHPGurukul Online Nurse Hiring System 1.0 and classified as critical. This vulnerability affects unknown code of the file /admin/manage-nurse.php. The manipulation of the argument profilepic leads to path traversal: '../filedir'. The attack can be initiated remotely. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. The initial researcher advisory mentions contradicting vulnerability classes.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/23/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-1588 represents a critical path traversal flaw within the PHPGurukul Online Nurse Hiring System version 1.0, specifically targeting the administrative component manage-nurse.php. This weakness allows attackers to manipulate the profilepic parameter to navigate outside the intended directory structure, enabling access to arbitrary files through the '../filedir' path traversal sequence. The vulnerability's classification as critical stems from its potential to expose sensitive system files and data, particularly when combined with the remote exploitability factor that allows unauthorized parties to leverage this flaw without physical access to the system.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability resides in the improper validation and sanitization of user-supplied input within the profilepic argument handling mechanism. When an attacker submits a crafted profilepic parameter containing directory traversal sequences, the application fails to properly validate or sanitize this input before processing it within the file system operations. This allows the attacker to specify paths that extend beyond the intended upload directory, potentially accessing configuration files, database credentials, or other sensitive components stored on the server. The flaw directly corresponds to CWE-22, which defines path traversal vulnerabilities as weaknesses that occur when applications fail to properly validate file paths, allowing attackers to access files outside the intended directory structure.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple file access, as it provides attackers with potential access to system resources that could lead to further compromise of the application and underlying infrastructure. Remote exploitation capabilities mean that threat actors can leverage this vulnerability from any location without requiring local system access, making it particularly dangerous for web applications. The disclosure of the exploit to the public community significantly increases the risk of widespread exploitation, as malicious actors can immediately implement the attack without requiring additional research or development time. This vulnerability could potentially lead to complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and unauthorized access to patient information within the nurse hiring system.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability should focus on implementing robust input validation and sanitization mechanisms for all file upload operations within the application. The system must enforce strict path validation to prevent directory traversal sequences from being processed, ensuring that all user-supplied file paths are properly normalized and validated against an allowlist of acceptable directories. Additionally, implementing proper file access controls and privilege separation can help limit the damage that could result from successful exploitation. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls and intrusion detection systems to monitor for suspicious file access patterns. The vulnerability's nature aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers legitimate credentials and privileges, as successful exploitation could potentially lead to privilege escalation and further system compromise. Regular security audits and code reviews should be implemented to identify similar vulnerabilities in other file handling operations within the application, while ensuring that all file upload mechanisms properly validate and sanitize user input to prevent similar path traversal attacks from occurring in other parts of the system.