CVE-2025-34504 in KodExplorer
Summary
by MITRE • 12/12/2025
KodExplorer 4.52 contains an open redirect vulnerability in the user login page that allows attackers to manipulate the 'link' parameter. Attackers can craft malicious URLs in the link parameter to redirect users to arbitrary external websites after authentication.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/16/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-34504 resides within KodExplorer version 4.52, specifically targeting the user authentication mechanism. This open redirect vulnerability represents a significant security flaw that can be exploited by malicious actors to manipulate user navigation flows. The vulnerability manifests through the improper validation of the 'link' parameter within the login page implementation, creating an opportunity for attackers to craft deceptive URLs that redirect authenticated users to malicious external domains. The affected application fails to adequately sanitize or validate the redirect destination parameter, allowing arbitrary URLs to be processed without sufficient security checks.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability operates as an open redirect flaw that directly maps to CWE-601, which categorizes open redirect vulnerabilities as weaknesses where web applications fail to validate redirect destinations. The flaw exists in the application's authentication flow where the system accepts user-provided redirect URLs without proper validation, enabling attackers to construct malicious links that appear legitimate to end users. The vulnerability can be exploited by appending a crafted 'link' parameter to the login URL, where the parameter value contains a fully qualified external URL that will be executed as a redirect after successful authentication. This type of vulnerability falls under the ATT&CK technique T1566.001, specifically targeting the initial access phase through malicious links and redirects.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple redirection, creating potential vectors for phishing attacks, credential theft, and social engineering campaigns. When authenticated users are redirected to attacker-controlled domains, they may unknowingly provide credentials to malicious sites or be exposed to malware distribution points. The vulnerability affects the integrity of user trust within the application, as users who successfully authenticate may be led to believe they are navigating to legitimate application pages when actually being redirected to external sites. This can result in compromised user sessions, data exfiltration, and potential escalation of privileges if the malicious sites are designed to capture authentication tokens or cookies. The attack surface is particularly concerning because it leverages the legitimate authentication flow to deliver malicious payloads, making detection more challenging.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing strict input validation and sanitization of all redirect parameters. Organizations should enforce a whitelist approach for redirect destinations, ensuring that only predetermined internal URLs are permitted for redirection after authentication. The implementation should include proper URL validation that checks for absolute URLs and rejects any external domain references that do not match the application's trusted domains. Security patches should be applied immediately to update KodExplorer to versions that address this vulnerability, as the flaw represents a clear path for attackers to compromise user sessions. Additionally, security awareness training should be implemented to educate users about recognizing suspicious redirects and the importance of verifying URLs before authentication. Network monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual redirect patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts, while implementing proper logging of redirect activities to enable forensic analysis if incidents occur. The fix should align with security best practices outlined in OWASP Top 10 and NIST cybersecurity guidelines for web application security controls.