CVE-2024-44838: Openrapid RapidCMS SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2024-44838 Overview

CVE-2024-44838 is a SQL Injection vulnerability discovered in RapidCMS version 1.3.1. The vulnerability exists in the username parameter of the /resource/runlogin.php endpoint, allowing unauthenticated attackers to inject malicious SQL commands. This flaw enables attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms, extract sensitive data from the database, modify or delete records, and potentially achieve full system compromise.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability to bypass authentication, extract sensitive data, or execute arbitrary database commands on vulnerable RapidCMS installations.

Affected Products

• OpenRapid RapidCMS version 1.3.1

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-09-06 - CVE-2024-44838 published to NVD
• 2025-04-22 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-44838

Vulnerability Analysis

This SQL Injection vulnerability (CWE-89) affects the login functionality of RapidCMS v1.3.1. The vulnerability resides in the /resource/runlogin.php script, which processes user authentication requests. The username parameter is passed directly into SQL queries without proper sanitization or parameterization, creating a classic SQL injection attack surface.

The vulnerability is exploitable remotely without any authentication or user interaction. Successful exploitation can lead to complete compromise of the application's database, including extraction of user credentials, administrative access, and potential lateral movement within the hosting infrastructure.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is improper input validation and the use of unsanitized user input in SQL queries. The runlogin.php script fails to implement prepared statements or parameterized queries when processing the username field during authentication. This allows attackers to inject SQL syntax that alters the query logic.

Attack Vector

The attack can be performed remotely over the network against any internet-facing RapidCMS v1.3.1 installation. An attacker submits a crafted HTTP POST request to the /resource/runlogin.php endpoint with a malicious payload in the username parameter. Common attack patterns include:

• Authentication bypass using payloads like ' OR '1'='1' --
• UNION-based injection to extract data from other database tables
• Time-based blind injection for data exfiltration when direct output is not visible
• Stacked queries (if supported by the database driver) for executing additional SQL statements

Additional technical details regarding this vulnerability can be found in the GitHub Issue Discussion.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-44838

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual login attempts with SQL syntax characters (', ", ;, --, /*) in the username field
• Database error messages in web server logs indicating SQL syntax errors
• Anomalous database queries in MySQL/MariaDB slow query or general logs
• Unexpected data access patterns or bulk data retrieval from user tables

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in POST requests to /resource/runlogin.php
• Implement application-layer logging to capture all authentication attempts with full parameter values
• Configure database audit logging to track unusual SELECT, UNION, or administrative queries
• Use intrusion detection systems (IDS) with signatures for common SQL injection payloads

Monitoring Recommendations

• Monitor web server access logs for repeated POST requests to /resource/runlogin.php with encoded or suspicious characters
• Set up alerts for database errors related to SQL syntax in the authentication workflow
• Track failed login attempts with unusually long or malformed username values
• Review database connection logs for queries originating from the web application that contain injection patterns

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-44838

Immediate Actions Required

• Immediately assess if RapidCMS v1.3.1 is deployed in your environment and identify all instances
• Consider taking vulnerable RapidCMS installations offline until patched or protected
• Implement WAF rules to filter SQL injection attempts targeting the login endpoint
• Restrict network access to the RapidCMS administrative interface to trusted IP addresses only

Patch Information

No official vendor patch has been identified in the available CVE data. Organizations should monitor the OpenRapid RapidCMS GitHub repository for updates and patches addressing this vulnerability. Contact the vendor directly for remediation guidance if a patch is not publicly available.

Workarounds

• Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL injection protection rules in front of the RapidCMS application
• Implement input validation at the web server level using mod_security or similar tools to sanitize the username parameter
• Restrict access to /resource/runlogin.php using IP whitelisting if the application is only accessed from known locations
• Consider migrating to an alternative CMS solution if a patch is not forthcoming from the vendor

# Example mod_security rule to block SQL injection on login endpoint
SecRule REQUEST_FILENAME "@contains /resource/runlogin.php" \
    "id:100001,phase:2,deny,status:403,msg:'SQL Injection attempt blocked',\
    chain"
    SecRule ARGS:username "@detectSQLi" "t:none,t:urlDecodeUni"