CVE-2024-32830: BuddyForms Path Traversal Vulnerability

CVE-2024-32830 Overview

Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in ThemeKraft BuddyForms allows Server Side Request Forgery, Relative Path Traversal. This issue affects BuddyForms from unspecified versions through 2.8.8.

Critical Impact
This vulnerability can potentially allow an attacker to read arbitrary files and exploit the server through SSRF.

Affected Products

BuddyForms (Versions: unspecified through 2.8.8)
Not Available
Not Available

Discovery Timeline

2024-05-17 - CVE CVE-2024-32830 published to NVD
2024-11-21 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-32830

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a result of improper validation of user-supplied file paths. This allows attackers to traverse directories and access arbitrary files outside the expected allowable paths, potentially leading to SSRF attacks by tricking the server into making requests to unintended destinations.

Root Cause

The root cause lies in inadequate path sanitization and failure to restrict file operations within a specific directory scope.

Attack Vector

The attack can be executed remotely over a network by exploiting insufficient security controls on file paths.

python

# Example exploitation code (sanitized)
import requests

url = "http://target-site.com/buddyforms-plugin?file=../../../../etc/passwd"
response = requests.get(url)

if "root:" in response.text:
    print("Vulnerable to Path Traversal")

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-32830

Indicators of Compromise

Unusual file access logs indicating directory traversal attempts
Unexpected outbound network requests
Increased 404 errors for non-existing files

Detection Strategies

Implement file path validation checks in application logs and network traffic analysis. Utilize anomaly detection to flag abnormal file access patterns.

Monitoring Recommendations

Regularly inspect web server logs for directory traversal sequences and unauthorized access attempts. Employ network monitoring tools to detect suspicious outbound traffic.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-32830

Immediate Actions Required

Update BuddyForms to the latest version
Implement strict input validation for file paths
Restrict server permissions to limit file access

Patch Information

Ensure all relevant security patches for BuddyForms are applied. Regularly check vendor releases for updates to maintain system security.

Workarounds

Apply file access restrictions and validate all user inputs rigorously. Consider using a WAF (Web Application Firewall) to block malicious requests.

bash

# Configuration example
sed -i 's/AllowOverride None/AllowOverride All/g' /etc/apache2/apache2.conf