Overview
This blog post aims to shed light on a recently discovered cybersecurity vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-52832. This flaw pertains to the NGG Smart Image Search, a popular feature in the wpo-HR system. The vulnerability originates from an improper neutralization of special elements used in SQL commands, leading to potential SQL Injection. This SQL injection vulnerability could potentially allow attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands, leading to system compromise or significant data leakage.
Given the severity of the vulnerability, which has been rated at 9.3 on the CVSS scale, it is crucial for system administrators, cybersecurity professionals, and users of the wpo-HR system to understand this vulnerability, its potential impacts, and the necessary steps for mitigation.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-52832
Severity: High (CVSS: 9.3)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Impact: System compromise and potential data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
wpo-HR NGG Smart Image Search | up to and including 3.4.1
How the Exploit Works
The vulnerability primarily stems from the application’s failure to properly sanitize user-supplied input in SQL queries. An attacker can craft malicious SQL statements and inject them into the application. Due to the lack of proper sanitization, these malicious SQL statements can be executed directly by the database server, leading to unauthorized access, data manipulation, or potential system compromise.
Conceptual Example Code
Here’s a conceptual example of a malicious HTTP request exploiting this vulnerability:
POST /ngg-smart-image-search HTTP/1.1
Host: target.example.com
Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded
searchQuery=' OR '1'='1'; DROP TABLE users; --In the above example, the attacker injects a payload (`’ OR ‘1’=’1′; DROP TABLE users; –`) which first always evaluates as true, potentially revealing all the data in the queried table. The attacker then uses a SQL command (`DROP TABLE users`) to delete an entire table, in this case ‘users’. The rest of the original SQL query is commented out using `–`, ensuring that the injected SQL command executes as intended.
Recommended Mitigation
The vendor has acknowledged this vulnerability and released a patch to address it. Users of the affected versions of wpo-HR NGG Smart Image Search are strongly advised to apply the patch as soon as possible. As an interim measure, users can also employ a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) to detect and block SQL injection attempts.