CVE-2018-7501

Vulnerability

CVE-2018-7501 describes multiple SQL injection vulnerabilities in Advantech WebAccess versions V8.2_20170817 and prior, WebAccess versions V8.3.0 and prior, WebAccess Dashboard versions V.2.0.15 and prior, WebAccess Scada Node versions prior to 8.3.1, and WebAccess/NMS 2.0.3 and prior [1]. The vulnerabilities are classified as CWE-89 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command) and reside in the web application components that fail to sanitize user-supplied input before incorporating it into SQL queries [1]. No specific configuration or authentication requirements are needed for the vulnerable code path to be reachable; the flaws are present in the default installation of the affected versions [1].

Exploitation

An attacker can exploit these SQL injection vulnerabilities remotely without any prior authentication or user interaction, as the CVSS vector string (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N) indicates [1]. The attack requires only network access to the affected service on a TCP port (e.g., 80 or 443) where the WebAccess application listens [1]. The attacker sends crafted HTTP requests containing malicious SQL payloads in parameters that are unsafely concatenated into database queries. The low skill level required means a relatively unsophisticated attacker can successfully execute the exploit [1].

Impact

On successful exploitation, an attacker can disclose sensitive information stored in the underlying database of the Advantech WebAccess host [1]. This includes potentially credential data, configuration details, or other operational information that could aid further attacks. The CVSS impact metrics indicate a low confidentiality impact with no impact to integrity or availability, meaning the attacker can read limited database contents but cannot modify data or disrupt service through this specific vector [1]. However, the advisory notes that other vulnerabilities in the same advisory (such as arbitrary code execution) could be chained to increase the overall impact [1].

Mitigation

Advantech has released fixes for the affected products, as indicated in the ICS-CERT advisory [1]. Users should update WebAccess to version V8.3.1 or later, WebAccess Dashboard to version V2.0.16 or later, WebAccess Scada Node to version 8.3.1 or later, and WebAccess/NMS to version 2.0.4 or later [1]. For versions that have reached end-of-life (EOL), no further updates are available, and migration to supported versions is recommended [1]. No workarounds are documented in the advisory. This CVE is not currently listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog [1].