Code Injection Vulnerability

Overview

Code injection is a type of security vulnerability that occurs when an attacker sends malicious data to a web application in order to exploit its functionality. It often involves injecting malicious code into the application's inputs to make the application perform unintended actions. One common example of code injection is SQL injection, where the attacker manipulates a database query to retrieve or manipulate data.

Description

Code injection vulnerabilities can be present in various technologies used in websites. They occur due to a lack of validation and sanitization of user input, which allows attackers to inject and execute arbitrary code. For example, a code injection vulnerability can be exploited by passing a specially crafted parameter value that alters the structure of an SQL query, leading to unauthorized access to the database.

How to Prevent ?

Preventing code injection vulnerabilities requires following security best practices. Some measures to consider include: 1. Use parameterized queries or prepared statements to separate data from the application logic, making it harder for attackers to inject malicious code. 2. Employ a secure API that avoids the use of interpreters or provides a parameterized interface. 3. Implement server-side input validation using an allowlist approach to only accept expected input and reject any malicious or unexpected characters. 4. Escape special characters in dynamic queries to prevent their interpretation as code. 5. Limit the scope of queries and use SQL controls like LIMIT to prevent mass disclosure of data in case of a successful injection. By implementing these measures, website owners can significantly reduce the risk of code injection attacks and protect sensitive data from unauthorized access.

Example Attack Scenarios:

• SQL Injection in Joomla! 3.7:  In Joomla! 3.7, a SQL injection vulnerability was discovered. Attackers could exploit this vulnerability by manipulating an SQL query parameter to execute arbitrary SQL commands. This could lead to unauthorized access to the Joomla! database and potential data leakage, compromising the entire installation.

• SQL Injection in YITH WooCommerce Wishlist Plugin:  A SQL injection vulnerability was identified in the YITH WooCommerce Wishlist plugin for WordPress. Attackers could exploit this vulnerability by injecting malicious SQL code through a specific parameter. This could result in the exposure of sensitive data and compromise the security of WordPress installations using the plugin.

• Code Injection Attack Scenario:  Suppose a web application accepts user input to search for products by their names. The application directly concatenates the user-provided input with an SQL query without proper validation and sanitization. An attacker could take advantage of this vulnerability by injecting malicious SQL code through the search input. This could result in the execution of unintended SQL commands and unauthorized access to the underlying database, leading to data leakage or manipulation.