CVE-2017-12584 : Exploit Details and Defense Strategies

SLiMS 8 Akasia through 8.3.1 lacks protection against CSRF attacks, allowing malicious actors to manipulate user profiles and compromise accounts.

Understanding CVE-2017-12584

SLiMS 8 Akasia through 8.3.1 is vulnerable to CSRF attacks, enabling unauthorized modification of user profiles without the current password requirement.

What is CVE-2017-12584?

This vulnerability in SLiMS 8 Akasia through 8.3.1 allows attackers to change user passwords without authentication, potentially leading to complete account compromise.

The Impact of CVE-2017-12584

Malicious actors can manipulate user profiles, including passwords, without the need for current password verification.
Attackers can coerce users into changing their passwords to ones controlled by the attacker, resulting in account takeover.

Technical Details of CVE-2017-12584

SLiMS 8 Akasia through 8.3.1 is susceptible to unauthorized profile modifications due to CSRF vulnerabilities.

Vulnerability Description

Lack of CSRF protection in SLiMS 8 Akasia through 8.3.1 allows unauthorized profile changes.
Exploiting the passwd1 and passwd2 fields in admin/modules/system/app_user.php during a changecurrent=true operation can lead to account compromise.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: SLiMS 8 Akasia
Vendor: Not applicable
Versions affected: All versions up to 8.3.1

Exploitation Mechanism

Attackers can exploit the vulnerability by manipulating the passwd1 and passwd2 fields during specific operations, bypassing password requirements.

Mitigation and Prevention

Implement immediate steps and long-term security practices to mitigate the CVE-2017-12584 vulnerability.

Immediate Steps to Take

Monitor user profile changes for suspicious activity.
Educate users on password security best practices.
Consider implementing multi-factor authentication.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update SLiMS to the latest version.
Conduct security audits to identify and address vulnerabilities.

Patching and Updates

Apply patches provided by SLiMS to address the CSRF vulnerability.