CVE-2026-4841: Online Food Ordering System SQLi Flaw

CVE-2026-4841 Overview

A SQL Injection vulnerability has been identified in code-projects Online Food Ordering System version 1.0. This vulnerability affects the file form/cart.php within the Shopping Cart Module. By manipulating the del argument, an attacker can inject malicious SQL commands. The attack can be executed remotely over the network without authentication. The exploit has been made publicly available, increasing the risk of active exploitation in the wild.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this SQL Injection vulnerability to extract sensitive data, modify database contents, or potentially execute administrative operations on the underlying database server without requiring authentication.

Affected Products

• code-projects Online Food Ordering System 1.0
• Shopping Cart Module (form/cart.php)

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-03-26 - CVE CVE-2026-4841 published to NVD
• 2026-03-26 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-4841

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-74 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component), commonly manifesting as an injection vulnerability. In this case, the del parameter in the Shopping Cart Module's cart.php file does not properly sanitize user input before incorporating it into SQL queries. This allows attackers to inject arbitrary SQL statements that are executed by the database engine.

The vulnerability is network-accessible, meaning attackers can exploit it remotely without requiring any prior authentication or user interaction. The impact includes potential unauthorized access to sensitive customer data, order information, payment details, and other database contents stored by the food ordering application.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is insufficient input validation and the absence of parameterized queries or prepared statements in the form/cart.php file. When the del argument is received from user input, it is directly concatenated into SQL query strings without proper sanitization or escaping. This allows specially crafted input to break out of the intended query structure and execute arbitrary SQL commands.

Attack Vector

The attack is initiated remotely over the network by sending a crafted HTTP request to the vulnerable cart.php endpoint. The attacker manipulates the del parameter—which is likely intended to handle cart item deletion—by injecting SQL metacharacters and malicious query fragments.

A typical exploitation scenario involves sending a request where the del parameter contains SQL injection payloads such as single quotes, UNION statements, or boolean-based injection patterns. Since no authentication is required, any network-accessible attacker can attempt exploitation. The publicly available exploit code, documented in the GitHub Gist Exploit Code, demonstrates the practical exploitation technique.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-4841

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual HTTP requests to form/cart.php containing SQL metacharacters (single quotes, double dashes, semicolons, UNION keywords) in the del parameter
• Database error messages appearing in web server logs indicating malformed SQL queries
• Unexpected database query patterns or access to tables outside the normal cart functionality
• Evidence of data exfiltration or bulk database reads from application logs

Detection Strategies

• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block common SQL injection patterns in the del parameter
• Implement database activity monitoring to identify anomalous query patterns or unauthorized data access
• Review web server access logs for requests to cart.php with suspicious parameter values
• Enable SQL query logging on the database server to capture and analyze executed statements

Monitoring Recommendations

• Configure real-time alerting for SQL injection attack signatures targeting the Shopping Cart Module endpoints
• Monitor application error logs for database connection errors or SQL syntax exceptions
• Implement rate limiting on the cart.php endpoint to slow down automated exploitation attempts
• Regularly audit database access patterns for signs of unauthorized data extraction

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-4841

Immediate Actions Required

• Remove or restrict access to the vulnerable Online Food Ordering System until a patch is applied
• Implement WAF rules to filter SQL injection attempts targeting the del parameter in cart.php
• Review database logs for evidence of past exploitation and assess potential data exposure
• Consider taking the affected application offline if it contains sensitive customer data

Patch Information

No official vendor patch information is currently available. Organizations using code-projects Online Food Ordering System 1.0 should contact the vendor through the Code Projects Resource Hub for updates. In the absence of an official patch, implementing the workarounds below is strongly recommended.

Additional vulnerability details and tracking information can be found at VulDB #353147.

Workarounds

• Implement prepared statements or parameterized queries in the cart.php file to prevent SQL injection
• Apply strict input validation to the del parameter, ensuring only expected numeric values are accepted
• Deploy a Web Application Firewall with SQL injection detection rules in front of the vulnerable application
• Restrict network access to the application to trusted IP ranges only until a proper fix is deployed
• Consider implementing application-level authentication and access controls for cart operations

# Example: Restrict access to cart.php using .htaccess (temporary mitigation)
# Add to .htaccess in the form directory
<Files "cart.php">
    # Allow only specific IP ranges (modify as needed)
    Order Deny,Allow
    Deny from all
    Allow from 192.168.1.0/24
    Allow from 10.0.0.0/8
</Files>