CVE-2025-2660: Online Time Table Generator SQLi Flaw

CVE-2025-2660 Overview

A critical SQL injection vulnerability has been discovered in Project Worlds Online Time Table Generator version 1.0. This vulnerability exists in the /admin/index.php file where the e parameter is improperly handled, allowing attackers to inject malicious SQL commands. The attack can be initiated remotely without authentication, potentially compromising the entire database backend of affected installations.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability to extract sensitive data, modify database records, or potentially gain unauthorized access to the underlying system through database-level command execution.

Affected Products

• Project Worlds Online Time Table Generator 1.0
• Projectworlds Online Time Table Generator (all installations running version 1.0)

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-03-23 - CVE-2025-2660 published to NVD
• 2025-07-09 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-2660

Vulnerability Analysis

This SQL injection vulnerability affects the administrative interface of the Online Time Table Generator application. The vulnerable endpoint /admin/index.php fails to properly sanitize user input passed through the e parameter before incorporating it into SQL queries. This lack of input validation allows attackers to craft malicious requests that can manipulate the underlying database operations.

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-89 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command) and CWE-74 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component). These classifications indicate that the application does not adequately filter or escape special characters that have significance in SQL syntax.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is insufficient input validation and the absence of parameterized queries in the /admin/index.php file. The application directly concatenates user-supplied input from the e parameter into SQL statements without proper sanitization or the use of prepared statements. This allows special SQL characters and commands to be interpreted by the database engine rather than being treated as literal data.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based, meaning exploitation can occur remotely over the internet. An attacker does not require any prior authentication or user interaction to exploit this vulnerability. By sending a crafted HTTP request to the vulnerable endpoint with a malicious payload in the e parameter, an attacker can:

1. Extract sensitive data from the database using UNION-based or blind SQL injection techniques
2. Modify or delete existing database records
3. Bypass authentication mechanisms
4. Potentially execute operating system commands if the database server supports such functionality (e.g., xp_cmdshell in MSSQL or INTO OUTFILE in MySQL)

The vulnerability has been publicly disclosed, and technical details are available through external references including the GitHub Issue on CVE and VulDB #300676.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-2660

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual or malformed requests to /admin/index.php containing SQL syntax characters such as single quotes ('), double dashes (--), or UNION SELECT statements in the e parameter
• Database error messages appearing in web server logs or responses indicating SQL syntax errors
• Unexpected database queries or authentication bypasses in database audit logs
• Anomalous data extraction patterns or bulk data access from the application database

Detection Strategies

• Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block common SQL injection patterns targeting the /admin/index.php endpoint
• Monitor HTTP access logs for requests containing encoded or plaintext SQL injection payloads in query parameters
• Enable database query logging and alert on queries containing suspicious patterns such as UNION, SELECT, DROP, or comment sequences
• Deploy intrusion detection systems (IDS) with signatures for SQL injection attack patterns

Monitoring Recommendations

• Configure real-time alerting for any requests to administrative endpoints containing special characters or SQL keywords
• Implement application-level logging to capture all parameter values passed to the vulnerable endpoint
• Monitor database connection patterns for unusual query volumes or access to sensitive tables
• Enable SentinelOne Singularity platform monitoring on servers hosting the vulnerable application to detect post-exploitation activities

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-2660

Immediate Actions Required

• Remove or disable public access to the Online Time Table Generator application until patching is complete
• Implement web application firewall rules to block requests containing SQL injection payloads to /admin/index.php
• Review database logs for any signs of past exploitation attempts and investigate potential data breaches
• Consider deploying the application behind a VPN or IP whitelist to restrict administrative access

Patch Information

At the time of this writing, no official vendor patch has been released for this vulnerability. Organizations using Project Worlds Online Time Table Generator 1.0 should contact the vendor for remediation guidance or consider migrating to an alternative solution. Technical details and community discussion can be found at the VulDB entry and the related GitHub issue.

Workarounds

• Implement input validation on the e parameter to reject any input containing SQL special characters or keywords
• Modify the application code to use parameterized queries or prepared statements instead of string concatenation
• Deploy a reverse proxy or WAF in front of the application with SQL injection filtering enabled
• Restrict network access to the administrative interface to trusted IP addresses only

# Example: Apache mod_rewrite rule to block suspicious requests to admin endpoint
# Add to .htaccess or Apache configuration
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} (union|select|insert|update|delete|drop|'|--|;) [NC]
RewriteRule ^admin/index\.php - [F,L]