CVE-2024-5117: Event Registration System SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2024-5117 Overview

A SQL Injection vulnerability has been identified in SourceCodester Event Registration System version 1.0. The vulnerability exists in the portal.php file, where improper handling of the username and password parameters allows attackers to inject malicious SQL queries. This flaw enables remote attackers to manipulate database queries without authentication, potentially compromising sensitive data and system integrity.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability to bypass authentication, extract sensitive data, or modify database contents without any authentication requirements.

Affected Products

• SourceCodester Event Registration System 1.0
• oretnom23 event_registration_system 1.0

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-05-20 - CVE-2024-5117 published to NVD
• 2025-02-10 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-5117

Vulnerability Analysis

This SQL Injection vulnerability affects the authentication mechanism in SourceCodester Event Registration System. The vulnerable endpoint portal.php fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input in the username and password parameters before incorporating them into SQL queries. This allows attackers to inject arbitrary SQL statements that the database server will execute.

The vulnerability can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring any prior authentication or user interaction. An attacker can leverage this flaw to bypass login controls, extract sensitive information from the database, modify or delete data, and potentially gain further access to the underlying system depending on database configuration and privileges.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is the lack of proper input validation and parameterized queries in the portal.php authentication handler. The application directly concatenates user-supplied values into SQL statements without sanitization, escaping, or the use of prepared statements. This classic SQL injection pattern allows malicious input to alter the intended query structure.

Attack Vector

The attack is network-accessible and requires no authentication. An attacker can craft malicious HTTP requests to the portal.php endpoint with specially crafted username and password parameter values containing SQL injection payloads. These payloads can manipulate the underlying SQL query logic to:

• Bypass authentication checks using techniques like ' OR '1'='1
• Extract database contents using UNION-based or error-based injection techniques
• Modify or delete data if the database user has write privileges
• Potentially execute operating system commands if database features like xp_cmdshell (SQL Server) or INTO OUTFILE (MySQL) are available

The exploit has been publicly disclosed, increasing the risk of exploitation in the wild. Technical details are available through the GitHub PoC for SQL Injection repository.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-5117

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual SQL error messages in web application logs or responses
• Anomalous database queries containing SQL keywords like UNION, SELECT, OR 1=1, or comment sequences (--, /**/)
• Unexpected login attempts or authentication bypasses in portal.php access logs
• Database query logs showing malformed or suspicious queries originating from the web application

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewalls (WAF) with SQL injection detection signatures targeting the portal.php endpoint
• Monitor HTTP request logs for suspicious patterns in username and password parameters
• Implement database activity monitoring to detect anomalous queries or unauthorized data access
• Use intrusion detection systems (IDS) with rules for common SQL injection attack patterns

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging for the Event Registration System application and database
• Set up alerts for repeated authentication failures or unusual access patterns to portal.php
• Monitor database query logs for injection indicators such as stacked queries, UNION operations, or system table access
• Review web server access logs for requests containing URL-encoded SQL injection payloads

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-5117

Immediate Actions Required

• Restrict network access to the Event Registration System to trusted IP addresses only
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL injection protection rules
• Consider taking the application offline until a patch or fix is applied
• Review database user privileges and apply the principle of least privilege
• Enable database query logging to detect any exploitation attempts

Patch Information

No official vendor patch has been released for this vulnerability. Users of SourceCodester Event Registration System 1.0 should consider implementing application-level fixes or replacing the vulnerable code with parameterized queries. For additional technical details, refer to the VulDB advisory #265197.

Workarounds

• Implement prepared statements (parameterized queries) in the portal.php file for all database interactions
• Add input validation to reject special characters commonly used in SQL injection attacks
• Deploy a reverse proxy or WAF to filter malicious requests before they reach the application
• Restrict database user permissions to the minimum required for application functionality
• Consider using an alternative event registration system until the vulnerability is properly addressed

# Example: Restrict access to portal.php via Apache .htaccess
<Files "portal.php">
    Order Deny,Allow
    Deny from all
    Allow from 192.168.1.0/24
    Allow from 10.0.0.0/8
</Files>