CVE-2025-11397: Hotel Management System SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2025-11397 Overview

A SQL injection vulnerability has been discovered in SourceCodester Hotel and Lodge Management System version 1.0. The vulnerability exists in the /login.php file where the email parameter is not properly sanitized before being used in SQL queries. This flaw allows remote attackers to inject malicious SQL statements through the login form, potentially gaining unauthorized access to the underlying database and compromising sensitive guest and hotel management data.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability to bypass authentication, extract sensitive database contents, modify or delete records, and potentially escalate to full system compromise on the underlying server.

Affected Products

• SourceCodester Hotel and Lodge Management System 1.0
• nikhil-bhalerao hotel_and_lodge_management_system 1.0

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-10-07 - CVE-2025-11397 published to NVD
• 2025-10-09 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-11397

Vulnerability Analysis

This SQL injection vulnerability affects the authentication mechanism of the Hotel and Lodge Management System. The /login.php endpoint accepts user-supplied input through the email parameter without proper 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 remotely without authentication.

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-89 (SQL Injection) and CWE-74 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component). The public availability of exploit information increases the risk of active exploitation against systems running this software.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is improper input validation and the use of unsanitized user input in SQL query construction. The application fails to implement parameterized queries (prepared statements) or adequate input filtering on the email parameter in /login.php. This allows special SQL characters and commands to be interpreted as part of the query rather than as literal data values.

Attack Vector

The attack can be initiated remotely over the network without requiring any authentication or user interaction. An attacker can craft malicious HTTP requests to the /login.php endpoint, injecting SQL payloads through the email parameter. Common exploitation techniques include:

• Authentication bypass using payloads like ' OR '1'='1' -- in the email field
• UNION-based injection to extract data from other database tables
• Time-based blind injection to infer database contents when direct output is not visible
• Stacked queries (if supported by the database driver) to execute additional SQL commands

The vulnerability allows attackers to read, modify, or delete database contents including guest information, reservation records, and administrator credentials. For detailed technical analysis, see the GitHub Issue Discussion and VulDB entry #327334.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-11397

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual HTTP POST requests to /login.php containing SQL syntax characters such as single quotes, semicolons, or SQL keywords (UNION, SELECT, OR, AND)
• Database error messages exposed in HTTP responses indicating failed injection attempts
• Authentication log anomalies showing successful logins without corresponding valid credentials
• Database query logs containing unexpected UNION statements or comment sequences (--, #)
• Sudden unauthorized access to admin functionality from unknown IP addresses

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in requests to /login.php
• Monitor web server access logs for requests containing SQL injection signatures in the email parameter
• Implement database activity monitoring to detect anomalous query patterns or data exfiltration attempts
• Configure intrusion detection systems (IDS) with SQL injection detection signatures for HTTP traffic

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging on the web application and database servers to capture all authentication attempts
• Set up alerts for multiple failed login attempts followed by a successful login from the same source
• Monitor database connection activity for unusual query patterns or access to sensitive tables
• Review access logs regularly for suspicious request patterns targeting the /login.php endpoint

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-11397

Immediate Actions Required

• Take the Hotel and Lodge Management System offline or restrict network access until a patch is applied
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL injection protection rules as a temporary measure
• Review database logs and web server logs for signs of previous exploitation attempts
• Reset all database user passwords and application administrator credentials as a precaution
• If exploitation is suspected, perform a full security audit and consider restoring from a known-good backup

Patch Information

At the time of publication, no official patch has been released by the vendor. Organizations using this software should monitor the SourceCodester website for security updates and patch announcements. Additionally, tracking the VulDB entry may provide updates on remediation status.

Workarounds

• Implement input validation on the email parameter to allow only valid email format characters
• Modify the /login.php code to use prepared statements with parameterized queries instead of string concatenation
• Deploy a reverse proxy or WAF with SQL injection filtering capabilities in front of the application
• Restrict network access to the application using firewall rules to limit exposure to trusted networks only
• Consider migrating to an actively maintained hotel management solution with a stronger security track record

# Example WAF rule for ModSecurity to block SQL injection attempts
SecRule ARGS:email "@rx (?i)(union|select|insert|update|delete|drop|--|\\')" \
    "id:1001,phase:2,deny,status:403,log,msg:'SQL Injection attempt blocked in email parameter'"