Overview
A critical directory traversal vulnerability has been identified in PHPGurukul’s Pre-School Enrollment System. This vulnerability, documented as CVE-2025-28072, allows an attacker to gain unauthorized access to sensitive files and directories, potentially leading to system compromise or data leakage. This vulnerability is significant as it impacts educational institutions that rely on this system for their operations.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-28072
Severity: High (7.5 CVSS Score)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
PHPGurukul Pre-School Enrollment System | All versions prior to the patch
How the Exploit Works
An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by sending a specially crafted HTTP request containing relative path sequences to the ‘manage-teachers.php’ endpoint. The application fails to validate these sequences, allowing the attacker to traverse directories, potentially gaining access to sensitive files and system data.
Conceptual Example Code
The following is a conceptual example of how this vulnerability might be exploited:
GET /manage-teachers.php?file=../../../etc/passwd HTTP/1.1
Host: vulnerable-school.comIn this example, the attacker is attempting to access the ‘/etc/passwd’ file, which contains user account information. The ‘../’ sequences allow the attacker to move up in the directory structure, potentially accessing unauthorized files.
Mitigation Guidance
In order to mitigate this vulnerability, it is recommended to apply the vendor-provided patch as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime, a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can be used to block or alert on any suspicious directory traversal attempts. Additionally, input validation controls should be implemented to ensure that file paths containing relative path sequences are properly sanitized.
