CVE-2020-37110: 60CycleCMS SQL Injection Vulnerability

CVE-2020-37110 Overview

60CycleCMS 2.5.2 contains an SQL injection vulnerability in news.php and common/lib.php that allows attackers to manipulate database queries through unvalidated user input. Attackers can exploit vulnerable query parameters like 'title' to inject malicious SQL code and potentially extract or modify database contents. This issue does not involve cross-site scripting.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability over the network to extract sensitive database contents, modify records, or potentially escalate access to the underlying database server.

Affected Products

• 60CycleCMS version 2.5.2
• news.php component
• common/lib.php library

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-03 - CVE CVE-2020-37110 published to NVD
• 2026-02-04 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2020-37110

Vulnerability Analysis

This SQL Injection vulnerability (CWE-89) exists in 60CycleCMS 2.5.2 due to improper neutralization of special elements used in SQL commands. The vulnerable components, news.php and common/lib.php, fail to properly sanitize user-supplied input before incorporating it into SQL queries. Specifically, the title parameter accepts unsanitized input that is directly concatenated into database queries, allowing attackers to inject arbitrary SQL statements.

The attack can be executed remotely over the network without authentication, requiring no user interaction. Successful exploitation enables attackers to read confidential data from the database, including user credentials, session tokens, and other sensitive information. Additionally, attackers may modify or delete database records, potentially compromising the integrity of the entire CMS installation.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is insufficient input validation and the lack of parameterized queries or prepared statements in the affected PHP files. User input from HTTP request parameters is directly interpolated into SQL query strings without proper escaping or sanitization. This classic SQL injection pattern occurs when dynamic query construction trusts external input, allowing meta-characters like single quotes, double dashes, and SQL keywords to alter query logic.

Attack Vector

The vulnerability is exploitable via network-based attacks targeting the news.php endpoint. An attacker crafts malicious HTTP requests containing SQL injection payloads in the title parameter. These payloads can leverage techniques such as UNION-based injection to extract data from other tables, boolean-based blind injection to infer database contents character-by-character, or time-based blind injection using database sleep functions. For detailed technical information and proof-of-concept details, refer to the Exploit-DB entry #48177.

Detection Methods for CVE-2020-37110

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual SQL error messages appearing in web server logs or application responses
• HTTP requests to news.php containing SQL meta-characters such as single quotes, UNION statements, or comment sequences (--, #)
• Database query logs showing unexpected SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE operations
• Anomalous database access patterns or bulk data extraction attempts

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in request parameters
• Monitor application logs for failed SQL query attempts and syntax errors that may indicate injection attempts
• Implement database activity monitoring to detect unauthorized queries or data exfiltration
• Use intrusion detection systems (IDS) with signatures for common SQL injection payloads targeting the title parameter

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging on web servers to capture full request URIs and POST bodies for forensic analysis
• Configure database audit logging to track all queries executed against the CMS database
• Set up alerts for high volumes of requests to news.php from single IP addresses
• Monitor for outbound data transfers that may indicate successful data exfiltration following SQL injection exploitation

How to Mitigate CVE-2020-37110

Immediate Actions Required

• Remove or restrict access to 60CycleCMS 2.5.2 installations until the vulnerability is addressed
• Implement input validation and sanitization for all user-supplied parameters, especially the title parameter
• Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to filter malicious SQL injection attempts
• Review database permissions to ensure the CMS database user has minimal required privileges

Patch Information

No official vendor patch information is available in the CVE data. Organizations using 60CycleCMS should contact the vendor or consult the OpenSource CMS Resource for updates. Additionally, review the VulnCheck Advisory for any remediation guidance.

Workarounds

• Implement parameterized queries (prepared statements) in the affected news.php and common/lib.php files to prevent SQL injection
• Apply input validation using allowlists to restrict the title parameter to expected characters and lengths
• Use database stored procedures with strict parameter typing as an additional defense layer
• Consider migrating to a more actively maintained CMS if vendor support is unavailable

# Example WAF rule to block SQL injection attempts (ModSecurity)
SecRule ARGS:title "@detectSQLi" \
    "id:1001,\
    phase:2,\
    block,\
    msg:'SQL Injection Attempt Detected in title parameter',\
    logdata:'Matched Data: %{MATCHED_VAR}',\
    severity:'CRITICAL'"