CVE-2025-3579: Aidex Prompt Injection RCE Vulnerability

CVE-2025-3579 Overview

CVE-2025-3579 is a critical Code Injection vulnerability affecting Aidex versions prior to 1.7. An authenticated malicious user can exploit an open registry to execute unauthorized commands within the system through Prompt Injection attacks. This vulnerability enables attackers to execute operating system (Unix) commands, interact with internal services such as PHP or MySQL, and invoke native functions of frameworks like Laravel or Symfony.

The exploitation is achieved through Prompt Injection attacks targeting the /api/<string-chat>/message endpoint by manipulating the content parameter.

Critical Impact

This vulnerability allows authenticated attackers to achieve full system compromise through command injection, potentially leading to complete takeover of the affected Aidex instance and underlying server infrastructure.

Affected Products

• Aidex versions prior to 1.7

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-04-15 - CVE CVE-2025-3579 published to NVD
• 2025-04-15 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-3579

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-94 (Improper Control of Generation of Code), commonly known as Code Injection. The flaw resides in how Aidex processes user-supplied input through its chat API functionality. When a malicious user submits specially crafted prompts to the vulnerable endpoint, the application fails to properly sanitize or validate the input before processing it within the context of the underlying AI system.

The attack surface is particularly dangerous because it bridges AI prompt processing with system-level command execution capabilities. Once exploited, an attacker can leverage the application's privileges to interact with critical system components including the operating system shell, database services (MySQL), and web framework internals (Laravel/Symfony).

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and sanitization on the content parameter within the /api/<string-chat>/message endpoint. The application's open registry configuration, combined with inadequate prompt filtering mechanisms, allows malicious payloads to escape the intended AI context and execute arbitrary code. This represents a fundamental failure in implementing proper boundaries between user-controlled input and system execution contexts.

Attack Vector

The attack is network-based and targets authenticated users with access to the chat API functionality. An attacker who has valid credentials can craft malicious prompt injection payloads that are submitted to the /api/<string-chat>/message endpoint.

The attack flow involves:

1. An authenticated user accesses the chat API endpoint
2. The attacker crafts a malicious prompt designed to break out of the AI's expected input context
3. The malicious content is processed without adequate sanitization
4. The injected commands are executed with the application's privileges
5. The attacker gains the ability to run Unix commands, access databases, or invoke framework functions

For detailed technical information about the vulnerability and attack vectors, refer to the INCIBE Security Notice.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-3579

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual or malformed requests to /api/<string-chat>/message endpoints containing shell command syntax or escape sequences
• Unexpected process spawning from the Aidex application process
• Database queries or connections originating from non-standard contexts within the application
• System logs showing command execution attempts with application user privileges
• Framework function invocations that deviate from normal application behavior patterns

Detection Strategies

• Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect prompt injection patterns and command injection syntax in API requests
• Monitor application logs for anomalous patterns in the content parameter submissions
• Deploy endpoint detection to identify unusual child processes spawned by the web application
• Analyze network traffic for unexpected outbound connections initiated by the Aidex application
• Enable verbose logging on MySQL and PHP services to detect unauthorized interactions

Monitoring Recommendations

• Establish baseline behavior for the /api/<string-chat>/message endpoint and alert on deviations
• Implement real-time monitoring for shell command execution originating from web server processes
• Configure SIEM rules to correlate chat API requests with subsequent system-level activities
• Monitor file system changes in application directories for signs of post-exploitation activity

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-3579

Immediate Actions Required

• Upgrade Aidex to version 1.7 or later immediately
• Restrict access to the /api/<string-chat>/message endpoint to trusted users only
• Implement additional network-level controls to limit exposure of the Aidex application
• Review authentication logs for any suspicious user activity or unauthorized access attempts
• Audit system logs for evidence of past exploitation attempts

Patch Information

The vulnerability has been addressed in Aidex version 1.7. Organizations running affected versions should upgrade to version 1.7 or later as soon as possible. For additional details and patch information, consult the INCIBE Security Notice.

Workarounds

• Disable or restrict access to the open registry feature until the patch can be applied
• Implement strict input validation and sanitization rules at the web application firewall level for the affected API endpoint
• Deploy network segmentation to isolate the Aidex application from critical infrastructure components
• Consider temporarily disabling the chat API functionality if immediate patching is not feasible

# Example: Restrict access to vulnerable endpoint via nginx
location ~ ^/api/[^/]+/message$ {
    # Limit access to trusted IP ranges only
    allow 10.0.0.0/8;
    allow 192.168.0.0/16;
    deny all;
    
    # Additional rate limiting
    limit_req zone=api_limit burst=5 nodelay;
    
    proxy_pass http://aidex_backend;
}