CVE-2025-7481: Vehicle Parking Management System SQLi Flaw

CVE-2025-7481 Overview

CVE-2025-7481 is a SQL injection vulnerability in PHPGurukul Vehicle Parking Management System version 1.13. The flaw resides in the /users/profile.php script, where the firstname parameter is passed to a backend SQL query without proper sanitization. An authenticated remote attacker can manipulate this parameter to inject arbitrary SQL statements. According to the vulnerability disclosure, additional parameters in the same script may also be affected. The exploit details have been publicly disclosed, increasing the likelihood of opportunistic abuse against exposed deployments.

Critical Impact
Authenticated attackers can inject SQL into the firstname parameter of /users/profile.php to read, modify, or delete data in the underlying database.

Affected Products

PHPGurukul Vehicle Parking Management System 1.13
Deployments exposing /users/profile.php to network access
CPE: cpe:2.3:a:phpgurukul:vehicle_parking_management_system:1.13

Discovery Timeline

2025-07-12 - CVE-2025-7481 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-7481

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is classified under [CWE-74] (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component). The /users/profile.php endpoint accepts a firstname parameter from authenticated users and concatenates the value directly into a SQL query. Because the application does not use parameterized queries or sanitize the input, an attacker can break out of the intended string context and append arbitrary SQL clauses.

Exploitation requires low privileges, specifically a valid user account on the parking management system. Self-registration features in the application reduce the barrier to obtaining such an account. Once authenticated, the attacker submits crafted input through the profile update form to manipulate database queries. The EPSS score is 0.318% with a percentile of 23.467, indicating limited observed exploitation activity at this time.

Root Cause

The root cause is the direct concatenation of user-supplied input into SQL statements within profile.php. PHP code handling the firstname field does not apply prepared statements, type casting, or escaping through functions such as mysqli_real_escape_string. Any character with SQL semantics, including single quotes and comment sequences, passes through to the database engine unchanged.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires user-level authentication. An attacker logs into the application, navigates to the profile management feature, and submits a modified firstname value containing SQL syntax. The injected payload executes within the database context of the application user, enabling data extraction through UNION-based or boolean-based techniques. Other parameters in the same script may permit equivalent injection per the original disclosure.

No verified proof-of-concept code is available in the referenced sources. Technical details are documented in the GitHub Issue #111 Report and VulDB #316131.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-7481

Indicators of Compromise

HTTP POST requests to /users/profile.php containing SQL metacharacters such as single quotes, UNION SELECT, --, /*, or OR 1=1 in the firstname parameter.
Database error messages referencing syntax errors near firstname values in web server or PHP error logs.
Unusual SELECT queries against information_schema or system tables originating from the application database account.

Detection Strategies

Inspect web server access logs for anomalous request bodies submitted to /users/profile.php, focusing on encoded SQL keywords.
Deploy a web application firewall (WAF) rule set that flags SQL injection patterns on authenticated profile endpoints.
Enable database query logging and alert on queries containing UNION, SLEEP, or stacked statements from the application service account.

Monitoring Recommendations

Forward web, PHP, and MySQL logs into a centralized analytics platform to correlate request patterns with database activity.
Baseline normal profile update behavior and alert on requests with abnormally long firstname values or non-printable characters.
Track failed login attempts followed by rapid profile edits, which can indicate credential stuffing preceding exploitation.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-7481

Immediate Actions Required

Restrict network access to the Vehicle Parking Management System to trusted networks or VPN users until a vendor patch is applied.
Disable self-registration on the application to limit the population of users who can reach the vulnerable endpoint.
Audit the database account used by the application and remove unnecessary privileges such as FILE and write access to system tables.

Patch Information

No vendor patch has been published in the referenced advisories at the time of NVD publication. Refer to the PHP Gurukul Blog for updated releases. Operators should monitor the VulDB CTI #316131 entry for fix availability.

Workarounds

Modify profile.php to use parameterized queries via mysqli prepared statements or PDO with bound parameters.
Apply server-side input validation that rejects firstname values containing characters outside a permitted alphabet.
Deploy WAF rules that block SQL injection signatures targeting /users/profile.php request parameters.
Place the application behind an authenticated reverse proxy to add an additional access control layer.

bash

# Example ModSecurity rule blocking SQLi patterns on the vulnerable endpoint
SecRule REQUEST_URI "@streq /users/profile.php" \
    "id:1007481,phase:2,deny,status:403,\
    chain,msg:'CVE-2025-7481 SQLi attempt'"
    SecRule ARGS:firstname "@detectSQLi" \
        "t:none,t:urlDecodeUni"