CVE-2019-25443: Inventory Webapp SQL Injection Flaw

CVE-2019-25443 Overview

Inventory Webapp contains a SQL injection vulnerability that allows unauthenticated attackers to manipulate database queries by injecting SQL code through GET parameters. Attackers can supply malicious SQL payloads in the name, description, quantity, or cat_id parameters to add-item.php to execute arbitrary database commands.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated attackers can execute arbitrary SQL commands against the backend database, potentially leading to data theft, data manipulation, or complete database compromise.

Affected Products

• Inventory Webapp (all versions)

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-22 - CVE CVE-2019-25443 published to NVD
• 2026-02-23 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2019-25443

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-89 (SQL Injection), a critical web application security flaw where user-supplied input is incorporated into SQL queries without proper sanitization or parameterization. The vulnerable endpoint add-item.php accepts multiple GET parameters that are directly concatenated into SQL statements, allowing attackers to break out of the intended query structure and inject their own SQL commands.

The network-accessible nature of this vulnerability means any remote attacker can exploit it without requiring authentication or user interaction. This significantly increases the risk exposure as the attack surface is publicly accessible. Successful exploitation could allow attackers to read sensitive database contents, modify or delete data, bypass authentication mechanisms, or potentially gain further access to the underlying system depending on database configuration and privileges.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the improper handling of user input within the add-item.php script. The application fails to sanitize or parameterize user-supplied data before incorporating it into SQL queries. The vulnerable parameters (name, description, quantity, and cat_id) are directly concatenated into SQL statements without proper escaping, prepared statements, or input validation. This allows attackers to inject arbitrary SQL syntax that the database interprets as legitimate commands.

Attack Vector

The attack is network-based, requiring no prior authentication or special privileges. An attacker can craft malicious HTTP GET requests containing SQL injection payloads within any of the vulnerable parameters. These payloads are processed directly by the database engine, enabling the attacker to manipulate query logic, extract data through UNION-based or blind SQL injection techniques, modify records, or execute administrative database operations.

For technical details and exploitation methodology, refer to the Exploit-DB #47356 entry and the VulnCheck Advisory.

Detection Methods for CVE-2019-25443

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual GET requests to add-item.php containing SQL syntax characters such as single quotes, double dashes, semicolons, or SQL keywords (UNION, SELECT, DROP, etc.)
• Database error messages appearing in application logs or web responses indicating malformed queries
• Unexpected database activity patterns including bulk data access, schema enumeration, or privilege escalation attempts
• Web server logs showing suspicious parameter values in requests to add-item.php

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in request parameters
• Implement database activity monitoring to identify anomalous query patterns or unauthorized data access
• Configure intrusion detection systems (IDS) with signatures for common SQL injection attack payloads
• Enable verbose logging on database servers to capture query execution details for forensic analysis

Monitoring Recommendations

• Monitor web server access logs for requests to add-item.php with encoded or obfuscated SQL injection payloads
• Implement real-time alerting for database errors or exceptions that may indicate injection attempts
• Track database user activity for privilege escalation or unauthorized administrative operations
• Review application logs for patterns consistent with blind SQL injection probing (timing-based or boolean-based)

How to Mitigate CVE-2019-25443

Immediate Actions Required

• Remove or disable the Inventory Webapp application from production until a patched version is available
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL injection protection rules as an interim measure
• Review database permissions and ensure the application uses least-privilege database accounts
• Conduct a security audit to determine if the vulnerability has been exploited and assess data integrity

Patch Information

No official patch information is available at this time. Organizations should monitor vendor communications and the VulnCheck Advisory for updates regarding security fixes.

Workarounds

• Deploy a reverse proxy or WAF configured to sanitize or block requests containing SQL injection patterns targeting the vulnerable parameters
• Implement network-level access controls to restrict access to add-item.php from untrusted networks
• If source code access is available, implement prepared statements/parameterized queries for all database operations in add-item.php
• Consider disabling the add-item functionality entirely until proper input validation can be implemented

# Example WAF rule to block SQL injection attempts (ModSecurity)
SecRule ARGS "@detectSQLi" "id:1000,phase:2,deny,status:403,log,msg:'SQL Injection attempt blocked'"