CVE-2024-1702: PHP-MYSQL User Login System SQL Injection

CVE-2024-1702 Overview

A critical SQL injection vulnerability has been identified in keerti1924 PHP-MYSQL-User-Login-System version 1.0. This vulnerability affects the /edit.php file, where improper input validation allows attackers to inject malicious SQL statements. The vulnerability can be exploited remotely without authentication, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive data, data manipulation, and complete database compromise.

Critical Impact

This SQL injection vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands against the backend database, potentially leading to complete data exfiltration, modification, or deletion.

Affected Products

• keerti1924 PHP-MYSQL-User-Login-System version 1.0
• PHP-based authentication systems using vulnerable edit.php functionality

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-02-21 - CVE-2024-1702 published to NVD
• 2025-02-12 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-1702

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-89 (SQL Injection), one of the most dangerous web application security flaws. The /edit.php file in the PHP-MYSQL-User-Login-System fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input before incorporating it into SQL queries. This allows attackers to break out of the intended query structure and inject their own malicious SQL commands.

The exploit has been publicly disclosed, increasing the risk of active exploitation. The vendor was contacted early about this disclosure but did not respond, leaving users without an official patch.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the lack of proper input validation and parameterized queries in the /edit.php file. When user input is directly concatenated into SQL query strings without sanitization or the use of prepared statements, the application becomes vulnerable to SQL injection attacks. This is a fundamental secure coding violation that affects the core authentication functionality of the login system.

Attack Vector

The attack can be launched remotely over the network without requiring any authentication or user interaction. An attacker can craft malicious HTTP requests targeting the /edit.php endpoint with specially crafted payloads in vulnerable parameters. These payloads manipulate the SQL query logic to bypass authentication, extract sensitive data from the database, modify or delete records, or potentially gain access to the underlying server depending on database permissions.

The attack flow involves identifying injectable parameters in /edit.php, crafting SQL injection payloads using techniques such as UNION-based injection or time-based blind injection, and submitting these payloads via HTTP requests to exfiltrate or manipulate database contents.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-1702

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual or malformed HTTP requests to /edit.php containing SQL syntax characters such as single quotes, double dashes, UNION SELECT statements, or OR 1=1 patterns
• Database query logs showing unexpected queries or syntax errors originating from the web application
• Evidence of data exfiltration or unauthorized database modifications
• Increased error rates from the PHP application related to database operations

Detection Strategies

• Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block common SQL injection patterns targeting the /edit.php endpoint
• Enable detailed logging for all database queries and monitor for anomalous query patterns or SQL syntax in user-controlled input fields
• Deploy intrusion detection systems (IDS) with signatures for SQL injection attack patterns
• Configure SentinelOne Singularity Platform to monitor web application processes for suspicious database interaction patterns

Monitoring Recommendations

• Monitor HTTP access logs for requests to /edit.php containing encoded or plain-text SQL injection payloads
• Set up alerts for database authentication failures or unusual query volumes
• Track changes to sensitive database tables that may indicate unauthorized data manipulation
• Review web server error logs for PHP database-related exceptions that may indicate exploitation attempts

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-1702

Immediate Actions Required

• Remove or restrict access to the PHP-MYSQL-User-Login-System application until a fix is implemented
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to filter SQL injection attempts targeting /edit.php
• Conduct a security audit of all user input handling in the application
• Consider replacing the vulnerable component with a maintained authentication system that follows secure coding practices

Patch Information

No official patch is available from the vendor. The vendor was contacted early about this disclosure but did not respond. Users should implement manual code fixes using parameterized queries or prepared statements for all database operations in /edit.php. For technical details and proof-of-concept information, refer to the GitHub SQL Injection Example and the VulDB advisory #254390.

Workarounds

• Implement input validation using allowlisting to restrict acceptable characters in user input fields
• Refactor the /edit.php file to use PDO prepared statements or MySQLi parameterized queries for all database operations
• Apply the principle of least privilege to database accounts used by the web application to minimize impact if exploitation occurs
• Deploy network segmentation to isolate the database server from direct internet access

# Example PHP mitigation using prepared statements
# Replace direct query concatenation in edit.php with:
# $stmt = $pdo->prepare("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = ?");
# $stmt->execute([$user_input]);

# Restrict access to edit.php via .htaccess
<Files "edit.php">
    Order Deny,Allow
    Deny from all
    Allow from 127.0.0.1
    Allow from your.trusted.ip.address
</Files>