CVE-2025-10797: Hostel Management System SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2025-10797 Overview

A SQL injection vulnerability has been identified in code-projects Hostel Management System 1.0. This security flaw affects the processing of the file /justines/index.php, where improper handling of the log_email argument allows attackers to inject malicious SQL statements. The vulnerability can be exploited remotely without authentication, potentially enabling unauthorized access to sensitive database information, data manipulation, or complete database compromise.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability to bypass authentication, extract sensitive user data, modify database records, or potentially gain unauthorized access to the underlying system through the vulnerable login functionality.

Affected Products

• Angeljudesuarez Hostel Management System 1.0
• code-projects Hostel Management System 1.0

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-09-22 - CVE-2025-10797 published to NVD
• 2025-09-25 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-10797

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability represents a classic SQL injection flaw stemming from improper input validation in a web-based hostel management application. The affected component, /justines/index.php, processes user-supplied input through the log_email parameter without adequate sanitization or parameterized queries. When a user submits login credentials, the application directly incorporates the email value into SQL queries, creating an injection point that attackers can exploit.

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-74 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component), which encompasses injection flaws where user-controlled input is not properly sanitized before being used in commands or queries. The network-accessible nature of this vulnerability means it can be exploited by remote attackers without requiring local access to the system.

The exploit has been publicly disclosed and documented in the GitHub CVE Issue #1, which provides details about the injection technique. This public disclosure increases the risk as potential attackers have access to exploitation methodology.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the failure to properly sanitize or parameterize user input in the login functionality. The log_email parameter in /justines/index.php is directly concatenated into SQL queries rather than using prepared statements or proper input validation. This allows specially crafted input containing SQL metacharacters to alter the intended query logic, enabling attackers to manipulate database operations.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for CVE-2025-10797 is network-based, requiring no authentication or user interaction. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by:

1. Accessing the vulnerable login page at /justines/index.php
2. Submitting a crafted payload through the log_email parameter
3. Injecting SQL syntax that modifies the underlying query structure
4. Bypassing authentication or extracting sensitive data from the database

The injection point in the email field of a login form is particularly concerning as it handles authentication logic, potentially allowing complete authentication bypass through SQL manipulation techniques such as ' OR '1'='1 style payloads or UNION-based data extraction.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-10797

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual SQL error messages appearing in web server logs related to /justines/index.php
• Login attempts containing SQL special characters (single quotes, semicolons, comment sequences) in the email field
• Unexpected database query patterns or errors in database audit logs
• Access logs showing repeated requests to /justines/index.php with encoded or unusual parameter values

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in the log_email parameter
• Implement database query logging to identify anomalous or malformed SQL statements originating from the application
• Configure intrusion detection systems (IDS) to alert on common SQL injection signatures targeting login endpoints
• Monitor application logs for authentication anomalies, such as successful logins without valid credentials

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable verbose logging on the web server to capture all requests to /justines/index.php with full parameter values
• Implement real-time alerting for database errors that may indicate injection attempts
• Review authentication logs for patterns suggesting SQL injection exploitation, such as mass login successes or database enumeration activity
• Consider implementing application-level audit logging to track all authentication attempts and their outcomes

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-10797

Immediate Actions Required

• Restrict or disable access to /justines/index.php until a patch is applied
• Implement input validation and sanitization for the log_email parameter as an immediate mitigation
• Deploy WAF rules to block SQL injection attempts targeting the vulnerable endpoint
• Review database logs for evidence of prior exploitation and assess potential data compromise

Patch Information

As of the last CVE update on 2025-09-25, no official vendor patch has been released for this vulnerability. Organizations using Hostel Management System 1.0 should monitor Code Projects for security updates. Additional vulnerability details and tracking are available through VulDB #325154.

Workarounds

• Implement prepared statements or parameterized queries in the affected PHP file to prevent SQL injection
• Add server-side input validation to reject email inputs containing SQL metacharacters
• Deploy a reverse proxy or WAF in front of the application to filter malicious requests
• Restrict network access to the application to trusted IP ranges until a proper fix is implemented
• Consider replacing the vulnerable application with a more secure hostel management solution if vendor support is unavailable

# Example WAF rule configuration for ModSecurity
# Block SQL injection attempts in log_email parameter
SecRule ARGS:log_email "@detectSQLi" \
    "id:1001,\
    phase:2,\
    deny,\
    status:403,\
    log,\
    msg:'SQL Injection attempt detected in log_email parameter',\
    tag:'CVE-2025-10797'"