External risk intelligence

CuppaCMS SQL Injection Vulnerability

CVE advisorySeverity: CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8)

CVE-2022-27985

CuppaCMS is a web-based content management system. The vulnerability exists within an administrator-facing script; such CMS administration interfaces are commonly deployed as internet-facing web applications to facilitate remote management.

SQL Injection

Cuppacms

1.0

Halo Surface Signal: 4 out of 5 — likely to be public-facing.

External exposure likelihood

Horizon Alert

Summary of the vulnerability and why it matters

A critical vulnerability has been identified in the CuppaCMS content management system that could allow unauthorized access and manipulation of sensitive information within the system. This issue affects how the system handles user inputs, potentially enabling malicious actors to execute commands and alter data without proper authentication. The primary concern is confirming whether your organization uses this specific technology.

A flaw allows unauthorized access to system data.
It impacts systems that manage content online.
Confirm if your organization uses this software.

Attack Path

How an attacker could exploit the issue

An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by sending a specially crafted request to the application's alert lightbox feature without needing any prior authentication. This allows them to directly interact with the vulnerable code, potentially leading to significant data compromise and system manipulation.

No authentication required.
SQL injection via alert lightbox feature.
Complete data compromise and system control.

Live Threat

Current exploitation, exposure, and threat context

The SQL injection vulnerability in CuppaCMS's administrator alert functionality could allow an unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary SQL commands against the application's database. This could potentially lead to unauthorized access, modification, or deletion of data stored within the CMS.

Database integrity and confidentiality at risk.
Via unauthenticated network requests.
Unauthorized data access or modification.

Operational Fix

Recommended remediation, mitigation, and detection steps

This vulnerability in CuppaCMS, a web-based content management system, likely impacts application owners and infrastructure teams responsible for its deployment. The first practical step is to identify all instances of CuppaCMS, assess their exposure and business criticality, and then determine the accountable owner for remediation planning.

Application owners must confirm exposure.
Verify CuppaCMS instances and their reachability.
Plan remediation based on identified risk.

Supplementary metadata

CVSS vector

Validate whether this threat affects your internet-facing exposure.

Halo Threat Intelligence helps prioritize remediation with Halo Surface Signal and H/A/L/O context. Start exposure validation with a free external attack surface trial.

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Frequently asked questions

What is CuppaCMS?

CuppaCMS is a web-based content management system used to build and organize website content. It provides an administrative interface to help users manage site data, settings, and features. Because it is a web application, it is typically hosted on a server where it can be accessed through a web browser to perform various site-management tasks.

What does CVE-2022-27985 mean in plain English?

This CVE describes a SQL injection vulnerability, which is a weakness where an application fails to properly filter user input before including it in database queries. In this case, the flaw exists in a specific file used for administrator alerts. Because the input is not sanitized, an attacker can manipulate these queries to bypass security controls, potentially viewing, changing, or deleting sensitive information stored in the application's database.

How can an attacker trigger this vulnerability?

An attacker triggers this flaw by sending a specially crafted network request to the alertLightbox.php script. The vulnerability does not require the attacker to have an account or be logged into the system; it can be exploited by an unauthenticated user. Simply navigating to the site without interacting with the specific vulnerable script or providing malicious input will not trigger the bug.

Is my instance of CuppaCMS at risk?

According to Halo Surface Signal, this vulnerability is considered a high-priority concern because administration interfaces for content management systems are frequently hosted as internet-facing web applications to allow for remote management. If your deployment is accessible from the public internet, it is more likely to be reached by unauthorized actors compared to internal-only systems.

What should I do if I use CuppaCMS?

Your first step is to inventory your infrastructure to confirm if any instances of CuppaCMS v1.0 are running in your environment. Once identified, evaluate the accessibility of these instances and determine their business criticality. Coordinate with the teams responsible for these applications to assess the risk and establish a plan for remediation.

References

Written by Nicholas Merritt

Nicholas Merritt is VP of Security Solutions at Halo Security. With more than 25 years across application security, vulnerability prioritization, and offensive security, he helps teams translate threat data into practical exposure validation and remediation focus. He authors Halo Threat Intelligence CVE advisories using Halo Surface Signal and H/A/L/O context to prioritize internet-facing risk.