CVE-2024-8416: Food Ordering Management System SQLi Flaw

CVE-2024-8416 Overview

CVE-2024-8416 is a SQL injection vulnerability in SourceCodester Food Ordering Management System 1.0, developed by oretnom23. The flaw resides in the /routers/ticket-status.php file, where the ticket_id parameter is passed directly into a database query without proper sanitization [CWE-89]. Remote attackers with low-level privileges can manipulate this parameter to inject arbitrary SQL statements. The exploit details have been publicly disclosed, increasing the risk of opportunistic attacks against exposed installations.

Critical Impact

Authenticated remote attackers can manipulate the ticket_id parameter in /routers/ticket-status.php to inject SQL queries, potentially exposing or modifying backend database records.

Affected Products

• SourceCodester Food Ordering Management System 1.0
• Vendor: oretnom23
• CPE: cpe:2.3:a:oretnom23:food_ordering_management_system:1.0

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-09-04 - CVE-2024-8416 published to NVD
• 2024-09-06 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-8416

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a SQL injection flaw [CWE-89] in the ticket status handler of the Food Ordering Management System. The /routers/ticket-status.php script accepts the ticket_id argument from an HTTP request and concatenates it into a SQL statement without parameterization or input validation. An attacker can inject malicious SQL syntax to alter the query logic. Successful exploitation allows reading, modifying, or deleting data within the application database. Because the application targets restaurant ordering operations, exposed data may include customer details, order information, and ticket records.

The attack is conducted remotely over the network and requires low privileges, with no user interaction necessary. According to the published advisory on GitHub and VulDB, the exploit has been disclosed publicly. The EPSS probability is 0.181%, indicating low near-term exploitation likelihood, though public disclosure raises baseline risk for unpatched deployments.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper neutralization of special elements used in a SQL command. The ticket_id parameter is incorporated directly into a SQL query string instead of being bound through a prepared statement. PHP's lack of input typing or escaping at the query construction site allows attacker-controlled payloads to break out of the intended query context.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires sending a crafted HTTP request to the /routers/ticket-status.php endpoint with a malicious value in the ticket_id parameter. Typical payloads use boolean-based, union-based, or time-based blind SQL injection techniques to extract data. The attacker needs a low-privileged account on the application but no administrative access.

No verified proof-of-concept code is reproduced here. Refer to the GitHub CVE Documentation for technical details on the disclosed exploitation steps.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-8416

Indicators of Compromise

• HTTP requests to /routers/ticket-status.php containing SQL metacharacters such as single quotes, UNION, SLEEP(, or comment sequences (--, #) in the ticket_id parameter
• Web server access logs showing unusually long or encoded ticket_id values
• Database error messages logged by the application referencing syntax errors in ticket-status queries
• Unexpected outbound data flows from the database server during normal ticket lookup operations

Detection Strategies

• Deploy web application firewall (WAF) rules that flag SQL injection patterns targeting the ticket_id parameter
• Enable database query logging and alert on anomalous query structures originating from the ticket-status endpoint
• Correlate HTTP request logs with database audit logs to identify injection attempts that produced unexpected result sets
• Apply MITRE ATT&CK technique T1190 (Exploit Public-Facing Application) detection content to monitor exposed PHP applications

Monitoring Recommendations

• Review web server access logs daily for requests containing SQL keywords or encoded payloads in query parameters
• Monitor for spikes in 500-series HTTP errors from /routers/ticket-status.php, which can indicate failed injection attempts
• Track authenticated user sessions issuing high volumes of ticket-status requests within short intervals

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-8416

Immediate Actions Required

• Restrict network access to the Food Ordering Management System application until a vendor patch is available
• Place the application behind a WAF with SQL injection signatures enabled and tuned for the ticket_id parameter
• Audit existing user accounts and revoke unused or shared low-privileged credentials that could be leveraged for exploitation
• Review database logs for prior injection activity targeting /routers/ticket-status.php

Patch Information

As of the last NVD update on 2024-09-06, no official vendor patch has been published by oretnom23 for SourceCodester Food Ordering Management System 1.0. Operators should monitor the SourceCodester website and the VulDB entry for updates.

Workarounds

• Apply source-level fixes by replacing direct query concatenation in /routers/ticket-status.php with PDO prepared statements or mysqli_stmt_bind_param
• Add server-side input validation enforcing that ticket_id is a numeric value before it reaches any SQL function
• Configure the database account used by the application with least privilege, removing rights to modify schema or read sensitive tables
• Disable verbose database error messages in the PHP configuration to reduce information leakage during probing

# Configuration example: enforce least privilege for the application database user
REVOKE ALL PRIVILEGES ON food_ordering.* FROM 'app_user'@'%';
GRANT SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE ON food_ordering.tickets TO 'app_user'@'%';
GRANT SELECT ON food_ordering.orders TO 'app_user'@'%';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

# php.ini hardening
display_errors = Off
log_errors = On
error_reporting = E_ALL & ~E_DEPRECATED & ~E_STRICT