CVE-2024-6015: Online House Rental System SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2024-6015 Overview

CVE-2024-6015 is a SQL injection vulnerability in itsourcecode Online House Rental System 1.0. The flaw resides in the manage_user.php file, where the month_of parameter is incorporated into a database query without proper sanitization. Authenticated remote attackers can manipulate the parameter to inject arbitrary SQL statements. The exploit has been publicly disclosed and tracked under VulDB identifier VDB-268723. The weakness is classified under [CWE-89] Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers with low privileges can manipulate the month_of parameter in manage_user.php to execute arbitrary SQL queries against the backend database, potentially exposing rental records, user credentials, and administrative data.

Affected Products

• itsourcecode Online House Rental System 1.0
• File: manage_user.php
• Parameter: month_of

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-06-15 - CVE-2024-6015 published to NVD
• 2024-11-21 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-6015

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a SQL injection flaw in the manage_user.php script of itsourcecode Online House Rental System 1.0. The application accepts the month_of argument from HTTP requests and concatenates it directly into a SQL query. Without parameterized queries or input sanitization, attackers can break out of the intended query context.

Attackers can craft malicious values for month_of to append UNION SELECT statements, boolean-based blind injections, or time-based payloads. Successful exploitation allows extraction of arbitrary data from the underlying MySQL database. Depending on database privileges, attackers may also write files or execute administrative database operations.

The attack requires network access and low-level authenticated privileges. No user interaction is needed beyond submitting a crafted request to the vulnerable endpoint. Confidentiality, integrity, and availability of database contents are all affected at a limited scope.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper neutralization of user-supplied input before incorporation into SQL statements [CWE-89]. The manage_user.php handler concatenates the month_of request parameter into a SQL query string instead of using prepared statements with bound parameters. This pattern is common in legacy PHP applications that rely on direct string interpolation with mysqli or mysql_query functions.

Attack Vector

An authenticated attacker sends an HTTP request to manage_user.php with a crafted month_of parameter. The injected SQL is appended to the underlying query and executed by the database engine. The attack can be launched remotely over the network without requiring physical access or social engineering.

The vulnerability mechanism is described in the public disclosure on the GitHub CVE Issue Tracker and VulDB #268723. Because the proof of concept is public, opportunistic exploitation against exposed instances is feasible.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-6015

Indicators of Compromise

• HTTP requests to manage_user.php containing SQL metacharacters such as single quotes, UNION, SELECT, SLEEP(, or comment sequences (--, #) in the month_of parameter.
• Unusual database error messages in web server logs referencing syntax errors near month_of values.
• Anomalous outbound database query patterns originating from the web application service account.

Detection Strategies

• Deploy web application firewall rules to identify SQL injection signatures targeting the month_of parameter on manage_user.php.
• Enable database query auditing to flag queries with abnormal structures, such as multiple UNION clauses or stacked statements.
• Correlate authenticated session activity with sudden spikes in row reads or schema discovery queries against information_schema.

Monitoring Recommendations

• Forward web server access logs and PHP error logs to a centralized analytics platform for SQL injection pattern matching.
• Monitor authentication logs for accounts performing repeated requests to administrative pages such as manage_user.php.
• Track database performance metrics for time-based blind injection patterns exhibiting consistent delays.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-6015

Immediate Actions Required

• Restrict access to the Online House Rental System administrative interface to trusted networks until a patched version is deployed.
• Audit application accounts and rotate credentials, particularly for users with access to manage_user.php.
• Review database logs for evidence of historical exploitation against the month_of parameter.

Patch Information

No official vendor patch has been published in the references for CVE-2024-6015 at the time of NVD publication. Operators should monitor the itsourcecode project page and the GitHub CVE Issue Tracker for updates. In the absence of a vendor fix, application owners should modify manage_user.php to use parameterized queries with bound parameters via mysqli or PDO.

Workarounds

• Implement server-side input validation that restricts month_of to expected numeric or date-formatted values before query construction.
• Deploy a web application firewall with SQL injection rules in front of the application to block malicious payloads.
• Apply least-privilege principles to the database account used by the application, removing FILE, CREATE, and DROP permissions where not required.

# Example WAF rule (ModSecurity) blocking SQLi in month_of parameter
SecRule ARGS:month_of "@detectSQLi" \
    "id:1006015,phase:2,deny,status:403,\
    msg:'CVE-2024-6015 SQL Injection attempt in manage_user.php',\
    logdata:'Matched data: %{MATCHED_VAR}'"