CVE-2025-7838: Campcodes Movie Reservation SQLi Flaw

CVE-2025-7838 Overview

A critical SQL injection vulnerability has been identified in Campcodes Online Movie Theater Seat Reservation System version 1.0. This vulnerability exists in the /admin/manage_seat.php file, where improper handling of the ID argument allows attackers to inject malicious SQL queries. The vulnerability can be exploited remotely without authentication, enabling attackers to manipulate database operations, potentially leading to unauthorized data access, modification, or deletion.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated remote attackers can exploit this SQL injection vulnerability to access, modify, or delete sensitive database information including user credentials, reservation data, and administrative records.

Affected Products

• Campcodes Online Movie Theater Seat Reservation System 1.0

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-07-19 - CVE-2025-7838 published to NVD
• 2025-07-23 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-7838

Vulnerability Analysis

This SQL injection vulnerability (CWE-74: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component) affects the administrative seat management functionality of the Online Movie Theater Seat Reservation System. The vulnerable endpoint /admin/manage_seat.php fails to properly sanitize or parameterize user-supplied input through the ID parameter before incorporating it into SQL queries.

The vulnerability allows attackers to inject arbitrary SQL commands that execute within the context of the database user, potentially granting full access to the underlying database. Since the attack vector is network-based with no authentication required, any remote attacker can target this endpoint. The exploit has been publicly disclosed, increasing the risk of active exploitation.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is the lack of proper input validation and parameterized queries in the manage_seat.php file. The application directly concatenates user-supplied input from the ID parameter into SQL statements without sanitization, escaping, or the use of prepared statements. This allows specially crafted input containing SQL syntax to alter the intended query logic.

Attack Vector

The attack can be initiated remotely over the network by sending a crafted HTTP request to the /admin/manage_seat.php endpoint with a malicious ID parameter value. The attacker does not require authentication to exploit this vulnerability, making it accessible to any network-based adversary who can reach the application.

Typical SQL injection payloads could include UNION-based queries to extract data from other tables, time-based blind injection techniques to enumerate database contents, or stacked queries to modify or delete data depending on the database configuration. The vulnerability is classified as injection (CWE-74), allowing attackers to manipulate the downstream SQL interpreter.

For technical details and proof-of-concept information, see the GitHub CVE Issue Discussion and VulDB #316102.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-7838

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual or malformed requests to /admin/manage_seat.php containing SQL syntax characters such as single quotes, double dashes, UNION keywords, or semicolons in the ID parameter
• Database error messages appearing in application logs or responses indicating SQL syntax errors
• Unexpected database query patterns or execution of SELECT statements against system tables like information_schema
• Evidence of data exfiltration or unauthorized access to reservation records and user information

Detection Strategies

• Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in HTTP requests targeting the manage_seat.php endpoint
• Enable detailed logging for the web server and database to capture suspicious query patterns and failed authentication attempts
• Deploy intrusion detection systems (IDS) with signatures for common SQL injection attack patterns
• Monitor database audit logs for unusual query activity, especially queries accessing multiple tables or system metadata

Monitoring Recommendations

• Set up alerts for HTTP requests containing SQL injection indicators in URL parameters, particularly targeting administrative endpoints
• Monitor database performance metrics for unusual spikes that could indicate exploitation attempts such as time-based blind SQL injection
• Review web server access logs regularly for suspicious request patterns to /admin/manage_seat.php
• Implement application-level logging to track parameter values passed to database queries

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-7838

Immediate Actions Required

• Restrict access to the /admin/manage_seat.php endpoint using IP whitelisting or VPN requirements until a patch is applied
• Implement input validation to reject any ID parameter values containing non-numeric characters
• Deploy a web application firewall (WAF) with SQL injection protection rules enabled for the affected application
• Review database user permissions to ensure the application uses a least-privilege account that cannot access sensitive system tables

Patch Information

At the time of publication, no vendor patch has been released for this vulnerability. Organizations should monitor the CampCodes website for security updates. The vulnerability details have been documented in VulDB #316102 and the GitHub CVE Issue Discussion.

Workarounds

• Replace vulnerable dynamic SQL queries with parameterized queries or prepared statements in the manage_seat.php file
• Implement strict input validation to ensure the ID parameter only accepts numeric values
• Add authentication requirements to administrative endpoints if not already present
• Consider taking the application offline or restricting network access until proper remediation can be implemented

# Example: Apache .htaccess to restrict access to admin directory
<Directory "/var/www/html/admin">
    Order Deny,Allow
    Deny from all
    Allow from 192.168.1.0/24
    Allow from 10.0.0.0/8
</Directory>