OWASP ModSecurity Core Rule Set up to v3.1.0-rc3 sql injection

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as critical, has been found in OWASP ModSecurity Core Rule Set up to v3.1.0-rc3. This issue affects some unknown processing. This manipulation causes sql injection. This vulnerability appears as CVE-2018-16384. The attack may be initiated remotely. There is no available exploit.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in OWASP ModSecurity Core Rule Set up to v3.1.0-rc3. It has been declared as critical. Affected by this vulnerability is an unknown functionality. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a sql injection vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-89. The product constructs all or part of an SQL command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended SQL command when it is sent to a downstream component. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

A SQL injection bypass (aka PL1 bypass) exists in OWASP ModSecurity Core Rule Set (owasp-modsecurity-crs) through v3.1.0-rc3 via {`a`b} where a is a special function name (such as "if") and b is the SQL statement to be executed.

The bug was discovered 08/10/2018. The weakness was presented 09/03/2018 (Website). It is possible to read the advisory at github.com. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2018-16384 since 09/02/2018. The attack can be launched remotely. The exploitation doesn't need any form of authentication. The technical details are unknown and an exploit is not publicly available. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $5k-$25k at the moment (estimation calculated on 08/23/2025). The attack technique deployed by this issue is T1505 according to MITRE ATT&CK.

The vulnerability was handled as a non-public zero-day exploit for at least 23 days. During that time the estimated underground price was around $5k-$25k. The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 253551 (Linux Distros Unpatched Vulnerability : CVE-2018-16384), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

There is no information about possible countermeasures known. It may be suggested to replace the affected object with an alternative product.

The vulnerability is also documented in the vulnerability database at Tenable (253551). Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Vendor

• OWASP

Name

• ModSecurity Core Rule Set

Version

• v3.1.0-rc1
• v3.1.0-rc2
• v3.1.0-rc3

License

• open-source

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Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

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